Today I am shifting between grief and gratitude as I remember my first customer, Shirley Saulnier, who passed last week after a long battle with cancer. Shirley brightened every room she came into and every life she touched. I cannot imagine the number of us who are grieving, as she touched so many lives as a parent and grandparent, a teacher, an active member of her church and our quilt guild. She found so many ways to share her abundant love of life; quilts were but one of her gifts to us all and I feel very privileged to have been a part of their creation. Shirley made quilts for her family and baby quilts for her church bazaar. She was always astounded at how well the quilts sold at the church fair and I hoped that the lucky people who bought them knew what a treasure they had lucked into. For Shirley put love into everything she touched.
Shirley’s gift to me is the lesson that though there may be shadows in life, that there will also be sunshine. Our lives are full of great stories, but the ones that center around family and friends are the best. I hope her family is able to wrap themselves in her quilts because, as my son said when he was little, a quilt is like a hug.