Deck the Halls

The last vestiges of decorating are underway. I've been putting off the foyer;I'm really not sure just why. It has always been one of the first things to be decked out for the holidays.
So today,rather than the red and green quilt I usually hang on the landing,I pulled out a very special quilt top and gave it a good pressing. This year, Joyeux Noel was going on the landing.
I have always loved this top...I didn't make it. It was made several years ago by a very dear friend of mine from Kentucky. She was so proud of this top. She had seen a photo another quilting friend had done and HAD to make one for herself. Did a darn good job of it too, if you ask me, but she never got around to quilting it. She was a hand quilter...all her beautiful quilts were always done by hand. She loved the feel of fabric in her fingers. Don't we all- I think that is half of why we quilt.
My dear friend lost a short but well fought battle against cancer a few months back. It is the first Christmas without her child-like giggles and stories. She did however, once she realized she was failing faster than she wanted to,tell her husband that he was to make sure her things were distributed to all of us- her cross-country guild, her friends and in many ways her sisters.Fabric, books, magazines and quilt projects were boxed up and stored with her neighbor waiting for the time they would be sent out to new owners. This top was the only thing I asked for. It felt funny in the beginnig, but knowing I loved Christmas as much as she did gave me the strength to ask. Hanging it for all to see gives me peace, contentment and happiness. I'll miss the laughter, the sewing into the wee hours on those occasions we were together, the hugs and the never saying good-bye. Even at the end, there was no good-bye to be said- just "safe journey home, dear friend".

Tonight I feel the decorating is done. She is here. Things are good.