Some people make quilts to celebrate the birth of a new baby. Others make quilts as gifts for newlyweds. Me? It seems I make quilts to thwart cancer.
Exactly one year ago I made my Fuck you, Lymphoma quilt as a gift for my friend, Angela who had cancer. Since then she has beaten cancer. I had hoped I was done with having friends with cancer. I was wrong.
A few months ago, another of our same group of friends found out she had cancer. She's a twenty-something single mom of an adorable four year old. And she's got stage four lung cancer. I've got to big, fat middle fingers for you, cancer. Go the fuck away.
Needless to say, I immediately set to work on making her a quilt. I used these purple and green fabrics I've been hording for a quilt and made some half square triangle blocks. I'm sort of in love with half square triangle quilts and sketch our designs in my classes. I went with a diagonal pennant looking design for this one. Sort of a festive, block party in the street kind of feel.
Just like my last cancer quilt, I had all of our friends email me messages for to put on the quilt. We're all so far away, covering various countries. The messages all went on to the back of the quilt so that Elaine can take her quilt to chemo and hopefully our words and well wishes give her the strength she needs to keep fighting. It's the least we can do. But we can't do any more. We're all tied by location, finances and circumstance. We can't make her dinner. We can't clean her house. We can't take her our to drinks or pedicures. All we have is our words. And this quilt.
Keep fighting the big fight, Elaine. The Gumdrops all love you dearly and wish we could do so much more than this. You are beautiful. You are strong. You are fierce. We all love you, and your quilt is on it's way to you.
And cancer? Pack your bags and get the hell out. I'd rather be making quilts for happy reasons.
