Tabitha Dorcas

One of my favorite women of the Bible has always been Tabitha Dorcas. Of course, I love the fact that she was a maker and sewed clothes for the poor and widow women in her community. But, I've always loved that when she died all those women brought the things she had made them to her funeral. 

My grandma died when I was 11. She'd taken a pillowcase she'd gotten on sale and used it to sew me a skirt when I was five. Then, she used the leftover piece from the top to teach me to sew a little bag. It must have taken me a long time to finish because when I was ready to show her the finished item, she was asleep in her green chair. At her funeral, there were so many people who said she was like a mother to them or had taken them under her wing and loved them. Even then, I thought, "That's what I want people to say at my funeral."

A friend of mine recently died and, as I walk around my house, I'm constantly reminded of her. The wall quilt that she helped me figure out how to put together. The menu planner on my fridge that I gave up on and gave her to use for fabric that, instead of cutting it up for parts, she finished it for me and returned it, the quilted bag she made for herself and then decided it was too big and asked if I wanted. It's perfect for holding crochet afghans in progress. 

2020 has been a crazy year. But, it's been a good year, too. A year for realizing that we never know when our time is up. A year for realizing that our time on earth is short. This is the time of year when I start planning and getting ready for the coming new year. I want to think about how to reach out to people more. I want to make some special things to give away to people I love. And I want to find more ways to show people I care.