So here's the thing. Chaos bothers me. Seriously bothers me. If something is in my future, I want to have it all planned out, know what to expect, and have at least three dozen contingency plans mapped out in my head. If we're being totally honest here, which I might as well be, I am even happier if said contingency plans are written down on paper. So that's me.
But another side of me wants to give chaos a chance. I mean, we can't know everything ahead of time. There are some roads that I may choose to take, even though I don't know exactly how things will look at the end. What if letting go might actually give my creativity the room and space it needs to stretch its wings and soar?
There is a Quilt-A-Long going on where members sew a quilt called the "Farmer's Wife" Sampler Quilt. This came from a magazine that was popular in the 1920's and as of yesterday, I have the book in my hands, foundation paper ready to stitch, and an especially helpful ruler arriving via Amazon tomorrow. Great, right? Sounds like I have everything ready to get started. Uh, wrong. What about the fabric? You can't really make a quilt without fabric... it's sort of important.
One option is to obsess about color combinations, to choose a theme, one fabric line, or a color or two and make everything coordinate from that focus. Another option is to go upstairs, dig through my stash basket of left-over fabric, and sew with whatever colors and fabrics happen to grab me at that particular moment. Over the course of a year (which is how long this quilt along is supposed to run) I would have made 111 quilt blocks that had no organizing concept, other than my own personal whim. Is this crazy or what? So why am I even considering it? Why am I also frantically searching online for bundles of fabric (maybe even two of the same bundle -- would hate to run out) that would safely take me through this project? Why does my heart say, "Just jump in and go crazy!" What if I make 111 quilt blocks based on whimsy and the whole thing turns out uglier than home-made sin? But what if, like the women of the 1920's, I use what I have, glad to have it, and appreciate the beauty that results?
Yeah, it's not an obvious choice for me. This is definitely a metaphor for much, much bigger things in my life and psyche. The easy choice is to go back and order one of those neat, tidy, coordinated fabric bundles, all wrapped up in a sweet grosgrain ribbon, and sit by the front door, waiting for it to arrive in its perfect little cardboard box.
To heck with it. Throw caution to the wind. Embrace chaos. Let my heart guide me. (Any more silly cliches I could add here?) Oh yeah, just do it. Yeah, that's the ticket. Get ready, fabric stash basket, your life is about to change... and maybe mine might change a little at the same time.
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