Featured Mom - Melody of Sew Melody

Today's featured mom has written her own post. She's done a fantastic job of discussing how creativity and motherhood go hand in hand. I hope you are touched by her words.

written by Melody of Sew Melody.

Motherhood demands that a woman have the eye of an artist so she might see through the chaos to the beauty that lies within the heart of her family.

I learned to sew when I was in my early 20’s and just had my 2^nd child. I wanted to make beautiful things for my children and couldn’t find exactly what I wanted at the mall. I began to fall in love with fabric. I bought yards of it before I even knew what to do with it! And that is what ultimately led me to make baby blankets.

I set out one day to make the softest blanket possible for a friend of mine who was expecting. I ended up with an amazing combination of satin and the softest minky. I was so eager to give it to her that I wrapped it up two months early and tracked her down at church.

Her baby boy died a day before he was due to be born. She laboured for hours in extreme physical and emotional pain. She delivered her stillborn baby, wrapped him in my blanket, and spent the next couple hours holding him and saying goodbye. Then they buried him in it. She told me how soft it was and how perfect it was for her beautiful baby.

Three babies have been buried in my blankies. Others have traveled to the hospital for surgeries and across the country on vacations with them. Envious cousins have demanded their own and adults have even purchased them for themselves. It is for those reasons that I find I cannot stop sewing. I can’t stay away from the fabric and the lives touched by it.

Being a mother has made me a more creative person that I was before. I have more purpose to my life and because of that I believe my creative spirit has greater capacity for joy and adventure. When I had my first baby, I was astounded by the transformation going on in my heart. I was no less astounded the day I had my 5th child.

Sewing time is my “down time”. It’s the time I get to spend with the fabrics I love to touch and transform. It revitalizes my weary spirit before I jump back into the ring!

The kids are naturally inquisitive and creative. As the older ones grow, I am constantly surprised by their instinctive attraction to beauty. They find it more easily in their innocence and are always trying to capture it in their art and play.

I love being a mother more than I love being an artist. In many ways, the two vocations are inseparable. Motherhood requires that a woman recognize the beauty among the dishes and laundry. It requires fruitfulness even after a sleepless night. It requires a reserve of passion to move forward through the tears and the long days. It is an adventure worth having!

You can find some of my work at www.sewmelody.etsy.com.