The Last Goodbye Part 3
Sheila Van Der Linden
Seriously? Part 3? After 4 years? I think I needed the 4 years to write this. I needed the time to become who I am today. Does that even make sense?
Its hanging in my house now. I see it every day, a visual reminder of my dad, a memory of a beautiful week in a tiny town in Colorado.
When I was quilting it on my long arm, I played classical music. My dad loved music like “Jesu Joy of Mans Desiring”. I felt close to him while the music played and my machine hummed along. That song is on my playlist for my studio, so when it randomly plays, an indescribable feeling comes in the room.
Every carefully selected piece of fabric, every stitch, every tear in frustration, is worth it when I see it hanging on my stairwell wall. This project was a challenge for me, in every way. He’s been gone for 46 years now. His absence felt every day.
I’m a grandmother now, and he is not here to see my beautiful family. The ripple effects of his passing are everywhere, but I have this. And the feeling of accomplishment this brings is incomparable.
Its time to move on, but I just might add a Swarovski Crystal or 2 here and there……
