A Quilt Only a Father Could Love

In my last post I kind of moaned about the quilt I was making for my Dad.  The four kids are convening in Memphis this weekend, where my brother and his family are hosting a shindig in honour of my father's seventieth birthday.  I wanted to make him a quilt.

I fixated on making a "manly" quilt, which to me meant subdued colours and staying away from a lot of fussy little pieces.  I saw this pattern in a recent copy of Quick Quilts, and it seemed like a good choice.  The pieces were large and manly and I knew I had to have colours in my stash that would go along with what I thought a man's quilt should look like.

But, oh!  It just looks [wrings hands] homely!  Do you see what I mean?  Just the slightest bit ugly.  Plus, instead of looking manly, it looks like an old man.  Now you may argue that at 70, my father is an old man, but he wouldn't thank me for pointing that out!

In a comment on my last post, someone said my father would love it because I made it for him.  Let's hope that's true, because, honestly, I think this is a quilt that only a father could love!

This is a special birthday for him, because it was very long odds, indeed, that he would ever see this milestone.  My father had cardiomyopathy and was very ill for a long time.  He could not climb a flight of stairs or walk to the corner.  Seven years ago, he had a heart transplant.  Three cheers for Vanderbilt's transplant team, and above all, three million cheers for a very special family, whom we do not know, who allowed this gift of life to be returned to my father.  I have signed my organ donor card.  Please consider signing yours.