Weave Me a Memory

By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established;through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures(Proverbs 24:3-4)

When I was a child, objects could vibrate with special energy that I called magic.  A feather might have belonged to an angel, and new sneakers most definitely made me  run faster.  There was no cyber world,; only the everyday object imbued with spiritual imagination.  Even young children today recognize a special blankie or matchbox car has the power to transport them to a time or place.   Many years ago parents in Mexico would weave a band of color for each year of their child’s life until they were five.  Now we post a digital photo of our child for each month, but I prefer how parents would pick out a color and texture of yarn to represent the spirit of the child.  The repetitive nature of weaving is a wonderful way to pray and remember that God’s Eye is on the child.

I created this series of smaller, more intimate God’s Eyes, to explore the mystery of precious objects and memory.  When my father died, he left behind a tin of twine bundles that reminded me of all the memory strands of him, some of them bristly and some of them shining ribbons.  I decided to tie together all the pieces and pray for peace as I wove a God’s Eye honoring his life of intense devotion to God and struggle with mental illness.

I began weaving these God’s Eyes to celebrate the holiness of a life well-lived: the first baby spoon, the last black comb found in grandpa’s drawer, the boy’s first pocketknife, my daughter’s treasured matchbox car, my husband’s boyhood army figures, my mother’s favorite costume jewelry.  To me, these objects are the opposite of a NFT, Non-Fungible Token digital art.  NFT art is all about ownership, but there is no way to see how the light shines on it,, no way to touch the soft threads, no wheels to spin, nothing personally stained with memories.     A handmade one-of-a kind personal object reminds us how every day is like a strand of colorful yarn wrapped around a cross, and each season of our lives is a treasure.