Insert sincere thanks to my fellow REAL World writers and boundless gratitude to our readers here. I really suck at ANs.
Stitched Together (1/1)
"Thanks for helping me with this," Grace said as she sat down beside Linda on sofa and placed two large shopping bags by her feet.
She'd spent so much time with Linda and her grandmother over the years their house felt almost like a second home to her. The casual decorating style and welcoming atmosphere represented Josie Donatella perfectly.
Sarge, Linda's beloved dog, nudged at Grace's knee until she gave him the attention he was looking for. CK, the cat that Cammie found in the bushes and Linda and her grandmother adopted, came immediately to investigate. She jumped on the coffee table, accepted some pets from Grace then stuck her head in one of the bags which held the items Grace hoped Grandma Josie could help her turn into a special surprise.
She'd had an idea for a one-of-a-kind handmade Christmas gift for Angie. She knew exactly what she wanted it to look like but needed help putting it all together. After a long talk right before Thanksgiving where it was decided that trying to work together over Skype probably wasn't the best solution, Nonna suggested Grace ask Grandma Josie.
"It's my pleasure," Josie said with a wide and sincere smile. "I'm honored you asked."
"Everyone brought me their material over Thanksgiving." Grace pointed to the bags.
"Perfect." Josie stood from her chair. "Then we have everything we need. I cleared a space for us to work in the other room."
Grace picked up the bags and she and Linda followed the older woman to the spacious dining room with double French doors.
"There's lots of natural light in here so it'll be the perfect workspace," Josie said as she opened the curtains. "We'll can just leave everything spread out on the table until it's finished. Linda and I usually eat in the kitchen anyway."
"Thanks." Grace deposited the bags on the table and took a seat. "I'll try to get it done as fast as I can, and I promise I'll clean up any mess."
"Nonsense." Josie waved her off. "A little mess now and then is what makes a house a home."
"That's not what you say about my room." Linda grinned as she slipped into the chair beside Grace.
"Your room." Josie rolled her eyes in an exaggerated manner that made both girls giggle. "Even after you clean it it still looks like a tornado hit it. But let's not talk about that now." She pulled a large sewing kit from the sideboard. "Tell me about this present you want to make for that adorable Angeline."
"I was looking on the internet for something special to get her for Christmas and I found a website about making a baby memory blanket," Grace explained animatedly. "They used old pieces of the baby's clothes and blankets, but I thought it would be fun if I asked all our friends and family to contribute a piece of material that was meaningful to them and then I could sew those all together and make a blanket."
Josie clapped her hands together. "What a special idea."
"Thanks." Grace beamed. "I asked them all to write a little note explaining why they made the choice they did and I'm gonna put those in a book for Angie to have when she gets older."
"It sounds like you already have quite the plan in place," Josie said. "You just tell me what you need me to help you with."
Grace bit her lip. "Well, I've never actually sewed anything more than a hem, and to tell you the truth that didn't really look very good."
"Sewing is a skill I can easily teach you," Josie said confidently. "But it's not the most important thing. It's love that will make this blanket beautiful, and anyone can see you have plenty of that." Josie pointed to the bags. "Let's see what we have to work with."
Grace lifted the first piece of material from one of the bags and smiled as the exquisite tone-on-tone linen damask brought back a flood of memories.
"The blanket is a secret from Uncle Steve and Aunt Catherine too, so I had to pick out something to represent them," she explained. "This is a piece of one of the tablecloths from their wedding. I called Boris to ask if there was any way I could maybe get a napkin or something to use and he told me one of the tablecloths got a big burn mark on it at an event last week, so he was going to have to throw it away. Before he did he cut off this piece and saved it for me."
"That was really nice of him," Linda said.
Grace nodded enthusiastically. "He's super nice. He listened to a lot of my suggestions when we were planning the reception and didn't treat me like a kid. He even said I can work as an intern for him next summer if it's ok with Danno."
"I bet that would be a fun job," Josie mirrored her friend's excitement. "Do you think your dad will let you do it?"
"I hope so." Grace held up both hands with her fingers crossed. "Oh … and I had another idea …"
Josie smiled. She'd become accustomed to the hairpin conversational turns of teenage girls.
"I watched some videos on Youtube showing how to use wax paper to transfer writing to material." Grace pulled her phone from her pocket. "So, I was thinking maybe I could put Angie's full name and birthdate on this piece."
Josie reached across the table and squeezed Grace's hand. "I think that would be lovely. We can watch the video together when we get ready for that part. In the meantime, let's keep going."
Grace laid the linen aside and smiled as she pulled out the next piece of material.
A Pittsburgh Steelers jersey.
"This is from John," she chuckled.
Linda looked at the note pinned to the sleeve and began to read. "My dearest Angie, between your father's fondness for the Redskins, your mother's inexplicable love for the Cowboys and your Aunt Carrie's repeated insistence, over my very strenuous objections, that Tom Brady is 'cute,' I have come to realize your only hope for reasonable sports fandom is if I take over and point you in the right direction. GO STEELERS!"
"Hey now," Josie teased, "I was a New York Jets fan growing up and then after I got married and moved to Ohio Josie's grandfather converted me to a dyed-in-the-wool Cleveland Browns fan. Maybe Angie will choose the Browns as her team."
"They're 0-11 so far this season," Linda sighed dramatically. Rooting for her late mother's favorite football team helped the young girl maintain a feeling of closeness even four years after her last surviving parent's sudden death. She was determined to be a Browns fan for her entire life, but she would be the first to admit this year was a tougher slog than usual.
"Well, maybe next year," Josie suggested with an upbeat tone as Linda shook her head ruefully.
"Probably not." The teenager frowned.
Grace leaned sideways and gave her friend a supportive nudge. She knew exactly why Linda loved the Browns so much. "Danno says they'll probably get the number one pick in the draft next year. Maybe they'll pick someone really good that'll help them start winning."
"I hope so," Linda smiled. "Let's see what's next."
"This is from Carrie," Grace said as she pulled the next item from the bag. "You met her and John at the wedding, didn't you, Grandma Josie?"
"Yes," Josie responded. "They're a very nice couple."
"Carrie is awesome," Linda chimed in. "Last year when I was helping get ready for Catherine's baby shower I mentioned I was doing a report on Germany and she sent me a bunch of pictures and information from when she was stationed there. She even let me do an email interview with her."
"That sounds like Carrie." Grace smiled. "She always wants to help. Just like Auntie Cath. I guess that's why they've been such good friends for so long."
"She's been all over the world. She's so cool," Linda said with just a touch of awe in her voice.
"Then she picked the perfect thing for the blanket," Grace chuckled as she held up a onesie Carrie had chosen that read, 'I take after my super cool aunt.' "She also wrote a really sweet note about how she promises to always be there for Angie to help teach her things and to protect her secrets."
Grace passed the garment to Josie who laid the neon pink onesie next to the black and gold jersey and the blush colored napkin. "So far we have a nice mix of colors. That's a good thing."
Grace bit her lip nervously. "What if some of the colors don't match? I didn't think about that."
"Don't worry about that," Josie assured her. "It's all a matter of arranging them the right way. It will be fine."
Grace lifted another stack of material from the bag. "These are from the Allen family. Wait until you see what Jenna gave." Grace reached into the middle of the pile and pulled out a piece of green material which she unfolded and held up for Linda and Josie to see.
Airbrushed on the front was a smiling ear of corn holding a sign that read 'N is for Niblet'.
"Isn't that perfect?" Grace bubbled. "Because Niblet was Angie's nickname before she was born."
"OMG," Linda squealed with excitement as Josie gritted her teeth at her granddaughter's use of text speak in normal conversation. "Where did she find it?"
"She had it made at that kiosk at the mall," Grace replied. "Turns out the girl who owns it is a patient of the dentist Jenna works for."
"That's awesome," Linda grinned as her eyes fell on the next item in the pile. "I bet I know who this is from," she laughed as she held it up.
"Jacob," they all said in unison at the sight of the t-shirt bearing a picture of a goggled minion holding a banana.
"It was one of his favorites, but it doesn't fit him anymore," Grace explained, recounting the conversation she had with the youngest Allen boy on Thanksgiving. "He said he couldn't bring himself to throw it away even though it has a grape juice stain that Jenna couldn't get out. We can cut around that though, right?" she asked hopefully.
"We can," Josie nodded, "but personally I think it adds character. Life isn't always perfectly neat."
Grace looked at the shirt and Josie could see the wheels turning in her head. "You're right," she finally decided. "Let's include a little of the grape juice stain."
"What's this?" Linda asked as she lifted the next item.
"That's a piece from one of Kaitlyn's favorite aprons," Grace smiled as her friend unfolded the gray pinstriped cotton. "She said she hoped it would remind Angie that if you love something you should keep practicing because it will help you get better."
"And these," Grace picked up the next two items, "are a piece of Dylan's Headless Horseman costume and a piece of his fidget spinner costume."
"Dylan always has the best costumes," Linda said sincerely.
"I know." Josie smiled. "I've seen the pictures. And the best part is how hard he works to make them himself."
"He said when he designs them himself and makes them from scratch he always gets exactly what he wants, and he never has to worry about anyone else's being just like his." Grace passed the material to Josie. "He's always one-of-a-kind."
"Which is a good thing to be," Josie said.
"Casey gave a pair of running shorts she was wearing when she won a race last fall where she was the youngest, least experienced runner." Grace smiled. "She said it was a reminder that if you try your hardest sometimes you can surprise people. And Cody gave a piece of the Christmas tablecloth they used as a tree skirt for the tree he and Steve picked out at Shop with a Cop right after the fire. He said he thought that was the worst time of his life but since that's when he met all of us it turned out to be one of the best."
Josie wiped a small tear from her cheek. The thought that each of the children had obviously put into their choices touched her.
"Jenna wrote a really awesome note about how lucky they feel to be part of Steve and Catherine's circle, and Jacob drew a mommy minion and five little minions on the bottom."
"What's that?" Linda asked as she pointed at a black and yellow blob on the bottom of the page.
"I'm pretty sure that's supposed to be their cat Midnight as a minion," Grace snorted.
"They all made great choices." Josie took the material laid it out on the table. "And maybe we can just label that little blob as Midnight so everyone knows what is," she chuckled.
"Kamekona and Esther gave me a shrimp truck and dessert truck t-shirt to use." Grace chuckled as she pulled them out of the bag. "And Esther helped Cammie pick out a bandana."
"Camouflage." Josie nodded approvingly. "Excellent choice."
Grace put the empty first bag aside and began to pull items from the second bag.
"Chin and Leilani gave this piece of traditional Hawaiian bark cloth and Adam and Kono gave this more modern piece of patterned cotton to represent both the old and new aspects of the island."
"Beautiful," Josie said. "These will fit in perfectly."
"Nonna sent this." Grace picked up a piece hand-knitted, pale yellow square and held it up proudly. "She made it herself."
"The work is exquisite." Josie ran her hand across the yarn admiringly. "Look at that. Every stitch is perfectly even."
"She sewed a Saint Raymond Nonnatus medal onto the back," Grace pointed out. "He's one of the patron saints of children."
"Let me guess who this is from," Linda said as she held up a small New Jersey state flag.
"Danno." They all chuckled in unison.
"He says he can't wait till until she's old enough to take a trip to New Jersey so he can take her down the shore and then show her what a real diner is like."
Josie smiled. "Tell him I said I wouldn't mind being on that trip myself."
Grace pulled a small plush rabbit from the bag and looked at Josie uncertainly. "This was one of my favorite stuffed animals when I was little. Do you think there's some way we can make it work if we take the stuffing out?"
"Of course there is." Josie examined the floppy-eared creature carefully. "We might even be able to keep him in the shape of a bunny and use it kind of like an applique. Are you sure you want to give him up? He looks well loved."
Grace smiled softly as her eyes became watery. "I'm sure."
Josie patted the teenager's hand and gave her a minute to compose herself. "Let's see what else you have in your bag."
"Joanie gave her favorite butterfly shirt … or as she used to call it her budderply shirt. Mary said she was still wearing it at least twice a week but after they talked about the blanket she said she wanted Baby Angie to have it," Grace said. "Isn't that sweet?"
"Very sweet," Linda and Josie agreed.
"And look … Aaron gave this great piece of Mexican wool he bought on a trip to Oaxaca a couple of years back. He said the dyes are all natural so they're safe for both Angie and the environment." Grace smoothed the cloth out on the table. "Isn't it pretty?"
"It sure is," Linda agreed. "I like all the reds and oranges. Very happy colors."
"Mary gave this shirt." Grace pulled a simple white blouse from the bag and placed it on the table. Josie could tell from the look on her face there was something very special about that particular garment. Grace smiled as she began to read the note attached to the sleeve.
Dear Angie,
This blouse is the one I was wearing when I signed the paperwork to buy my own house for the first time. It was a big day for me. A very big day. One that would have never been possible without a lot of people believing in me and cheering me on. I hope it always reminds you of how lucky we are to have so many people on our side. I'll always believe you can do whatever you set your mind to, because I know what a difference that kind of faith can make it a person's life.
I love you,
Aunt Mary
"That will mean the world to Angeline someday," Josie said as she carefully folded the blouse, careful not to crinkle the note. "It was a brilliant idea to ask everyone to explain their choice."
Grace removed the last three items from the bag.
"This is Grandma Ang's lace handkerchief. It has her name embroidered in it," Grace said as she held the cloth gently. "She also gave a Cubs shirt. She said at her age she's allowed to pick two things," Grace laughed.
"This is from Aunt Elizabeth." Grace unwrapped the tissue paper from around the cloth carefully. "It's part of the graduation stole she wore when she got her PhD."
Linda leaned over to get a closer look. "Wow."
"That is very, very special," Josie said. Elizabeth's story had been such a big part of what inspired her to return to school herself to study writing and literature. She hoped to graduate in the spring and owed debt of gratitude to both Rollins women for giving her the push she needed to pursue her dream, even at her age.
"And last but not least, this is a piece from the uniform Uncle Joseph wore when he was commissioned and a piece from the one he wore at his retirement ceremony," Grace said proudly. She scanned the attached note for a specific section.
… So, whatever you path you choose to pursue in life, I hope it brings you as much of a sense of pride and accomplishment as my service in the navy brought me. Choose a career you love, my angel, and you'll never work a day in your life.
"Beautiful," Josie smiled.
"And that's everything." Grace folded the empty bags. "Do we have what we need to make the blanket?"
"We have everything we need," Josie beamed happily. "Everything we need."
THE END
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