Blessed Are They

Green was only green, shades
of darker and lighter, before
the quilt was finished.
Afterward innumerable hues sprang
from every Leaf, Blade, and Fern.

Cutting piecing, sewing, joining
sides together compels
the eye to distinguish
Cedar, Spruce, Fir,
Grasses great with seed.


The Heart then learns to honor
the strength of Stem and Leaf
beneath the blossom’s boast.




My friend, Elaine, once said,"Until I started quilting I never noticed how many different shades of green there are."

That remark, made in an offhand manner, stuck with me and eventually inspired a poem. The first, I might add, that I have written in a couple of years. I believe that little comment is an important one for me.

It is so easy to be bored with the little chores and errands that make up a greater portion of most of our lives. It is easy to rush through them, to treat them as if they don't matter in the big picture. It is easy to feel unimportant when our work is unnoticed, not glamorous, and unapplauded.

But I believe with all my heart that every mundane chore, every inconvenient errand, every unappreciated kindness that we perform comes with its own reward, or blessing, if you will. And that blessing is the opportunity to be a little more mindful of all the wonderful things around us. All the overlooked, yet essential things that surround us. And to feel blessed, cared for, and valuable beyond measure.