On of my favourite traditions is the making of a quilt for people’s weddings. Every time a cousin gets married the aunts and cousins get together, piece a quilt, proceed to quilt it by hand. Yes – it takes FOREVER, over a year. And yes tensions run a little high as the wedding draws nigh. But, I love the tradition. It is one of the few places in life where I feel real intergenerational community. Something that I imagine our church community used to be a bit more like.
You see, present at the quilting are cousins of all ages. Enough to take care of my rug rat while I quilt. Uncles, who for some traditional reason don’t participate, pass in and out and make tea. And this tradition, for me, is grounded in our church community’s history.
My grandma found much fun and fellowship in her quilting group at church. And I know the ladies at my church faithfully continue to quilt. These quilts get sent to CLWR or raffled off. It is based in our church and farming history.
It also reminds me that there is a church history which is beyond my experience. When my grandmother quilted, she was with her peers. There would have been many people with small children when she had small children. And this is what I miss. I want my church to me like this. It doesn’t look like my church community will be like this anytime soon. But I do feel that I can live the ‘goodness’ of this tradition with my aunts and cousins.
You see, present at the quilting are cousins of all ages. Enough to take care of my rug rat while I quilt. Uncles, who for some traditional reason don’t participate, pass in and out and make tea. And this tradition, for me, is grounded in our church community’s history.
My grandma found much fun and fellowship in her quilting group at church. And I know the ladies at my church faithfully continue to quilt. These quilts get sent to CLWR or raffled off. It is based in our church and farming history.
It also reminds me that there is a church history which is beyond my experience. When my grandmother quilted, she was with her peers. There would have been many people with small children when she had small children. And this is what I miss. I want my church to me like this. It doesn’t look like my church community will be like this anytime soon. But I do feel that I can live the ‘goodness’ of this tradition with my aunts and cousins.
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