stitchinwitch

Yep = O can relate altho I won't go into that.....I STILL can buy ripe bananas, but there are purchases that dh and I would go ahead and get; but I think....noooooooooooooo we might be gone this year....that is a sort of stupid look at things. Quilt every day if that makes you happy cuz I heard there are NO LQS in Heaven!

mariebaker

Hi Marcy,
I will be 61 on my next birthday in August and have done a similar reassessment after a few tough years w/ critical illness of a child and personal setbacks and family deaths that resulted in a definite slump/lack of enthusiasm.
I had the impulse to sell my machines and fabric and books. In fact had started to photograph things to put up for sale.
But I took a deep breath and some quiet time to think through the sort of chaotic space of my mind.
Here is what I have decided. There are countless ships that have sailed, so to speak, in life and will never come back again.
However,quilting/personal creation is the one thing where I can be the master of my destiny w/o the need to meet outside expectations, deadlines or pressures. So rather let the world into my sewing room, I use that space as a refuge and and refueling place. The outside world is there when I leave, but nothing satisfies and settles my mind like quilting. It is a gift that we can give ourselves-
Finding this forum is another gift and by reading these loving thought and ideas I feel connected to so many others.
A book that inspired me was : "Legacy: The Story of Talula Gilbert Bottoms and Her Quilts" by Nancilu Burdick. It tells the story of her grandmother.
Sorry for the rather long,rambling reply. Hope all of our thoughts help you today-

patchitpat

I'm 67 almost 68 and there are times when I feel as you do, thats when I pick up a pen and start writing or a crossword puzzle book or just a jigsaw puzzle. Maybe you need to just get away from it for a while and do something else you enjoy. I know I always come back to sewing. I enjoy cutting out the quilts and sewing the tops but when it comes to the rest of it I have no desire to finish them sometimes. I will also say that my maternal grandmother lived to the age of l02 and she made quilts until she got to the point about a year before she died that she was bedridden, but we all have some of her quilts and her handiworks that will be passed down and cherished for years to come. You have a long way to go young lady, hugs!

QuiltingHaven

I can understand your "slump" however, my grandmother was still going strong at 96 and I have a quilt to prove it. We all go through "yuck" times but think of all the beautiful works of art you have completed and how many more you can complete in the next 20-25 years :-)

sandy l

I'm only 73, but I like her attitude :)

Great-great granny

Thank you for sharing - Don't be sorry - your story is an inspiration & proves we humans CAN get thru the worst times. We just have to find that road that gives us some comfort & peace. Next to having faith in God, isn't the meaning of quilts/quilting "comfort". ;)

sguillot

Thank you ladies, you are all so inspiring I will go home tonight and try and accomplish on thing that I need to to get set up to sew/quilt. Once I get in my room I don't want to leave it, it just the making my self get there. I think you have given me renewed interest and the desire to be productive instead of going home and feeling sorry for myself. I know there are many people in my position who has lost a spouse or someone close and trying to bounce back. On sad note is that he bought me a Nolting Long Arm Machine and I very much to get more into that part. Again thank you for all your stories and encouragement. Maby these were necessiarly for me but I sure got the love, friendship and emcouragement from them.

sguillot

I ment to say they may not have been ment for me but I got alot out of them anyway.

quilt3311

Hey, I'm 72 and have no thoughts of stopping fabric purchases, in fact just finished painting about 5 yards and sun printing it with fern leaves. Plan on at least another 10 - 15 years of creative endeavor.
I figure my quilting keeps me off my kids backs--ha. They encourage all my quilting as it keeps me happy and they get the "fruits of my labor". grin. I keep teasing them that my stash is their inheritance, so they better take care of it. If they sell it they will all be able to retire.

sguillot

I have told my Son the same thing about this being his inheratance and that if he throws one scrap of fabric away I will come back and haunt him.