Sewing is my Religion

 Sewing is my Religion...

This is going to be a wandering of my thoughts and I hope that you will allow me this space.  Sewing, like a religion, like family is the constant in my life.  It is always there for me to lean on or celebrate as needed..

Let's define religion according to the dictionary.   

1. A set of beliefs concerning the cause of nature and purpose of the universe... especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency usually involving devotional and ritual observances and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.
2. A specific fundamental set of beliefs and practice generally agree upon by a number of persons or sets
3. the body of person adhering to a particular set of beliefs and practices
4. the life or state of a monk, nun, etc.
5. the practice of religious beliefs, ritual observance of faith
6. something one believes in and follows devotedly, a point or matter of ethics or conscious.
7. to get religion ... to acquire a deep conviction of the validity of religious beliefs and practices.
8. the field of study and analysis that treats of Gods and of God attributes and relations to the universe ... study of divine things or religious truth.
9. thesaurus...  church, creed, cult, ritual, spirituality, theology,  spiritual mindedness

Sewing has lead me most of my life and even when I have been pushed into another direction, it has remained in my life to sustain me.  Each time I come back to it for comfort and for support.   A religion is a personal journey, that while it is shared with others of like beliefs it is still mine alone.  It brings me joy and glory even in the agony of failure.    I have chosen sewing, in many forms to be who I am in the world and I take pride that it gives back to me as much as I give to it.  I use the method and art of sewing to help me to serve the world.  I know that sounds strange, corny, ridiculous but also simple, wonderful and welcoming.

If you know me and have been a confidant for more than a few years you know that joke that the community of sewists is like a "cult".    We all join together, sometimes blindly, to serve our community through the act of sewing.  Sewing, in my opinion, is our common thread that lowers all barriers and prejudices.  Let me put this into another way.  If you are a Kansas City Chiefs fan, you are a fan!  It does not matter if you are from Platte County, Jackson County, Kansas City MO or Kansas City Ks or even New York City NY.  It does not matter what your church is or your race or your sexual orientation.  You are brought together as a believer in the KC Chiefs Kingdom.  That is the same for the community of sewists.  

Within the "Kingdom" of sewing there are "sew" many activists from garment sewing, quilting, embroidery, mending, hand-stitching, etc.  My personal religious' practice of sewing evolves and changes.  But I believe that "sewing" is a life skills that is open to all and drives self awareness and confidence and gives each of us a voice.  It should be available to everyone to experience.  Sewing gives me a purpose.  It often is my funnel to serve the greater good of my community.  Funny, sewing has been a servant of the greater good, forever.  Now-a-days there are quilters that make quilts for veterans, children, refugees and immigrants.  There are sewists making and mending clothing for the homeless and poor.  There are items sewn for weddings, babies, homes, hospitals, nursing homes and more.  Did you know this?  Possibly not, because the individuals doing the sewing get the glory often at home behind their own sewing machine.  And that is good enough!  And they sign up again and again to serve through sewing.  They give of themself with divine handi-work.   

If you have a sewists in your life, take a moment to understand them, to thank them and ask them what the art of sewing does for them.  It might surprise you. I have faith that sewing brings me closer to God and connects me with the goodness in our world.   I hope that you have something in your life that brings you this same joy.

and the Cloth Continues .....

Linnca