Previous Challenge Entry (Level 1 – Beginner)
Topic: Craft (as in handcraft) (02/08/07)
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TITLE: A Cross-stitch In Time | Previous Challenge Entry
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02/14/07 -
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What is truly remarkable about this little enchantress, however, is that her image was not formed by pen or brush...but rather with a needle and embroidery floss in the labor intensive craft known as counted cross-stitch. My sister, who created this masterpiece, no longer remembers exactly how many hours she "clocked-in" doing this project...but she does remember diligently working on it for several hours, every night for two solid years. There are at least 50 different shades of floss that make up the picture, the directions were in German and there are approximately 18 itty-bitty "X's" to an inch. Indeed, so fine is the detail, that even close-up it is almost impossible to discern the individual stitches that make up the whole.
I've been thinking a great deal about my sister and her "labor-of-love" that now hangs so prominently on her living room wall. I wonder how she must have felt when she first gazed upon the blank canvass and, after determining its exact center, threaded her needle and made the very first X. I think of her stick-to-itiveness as she stitched away while listening to Jeopardy or while waiting for the clothes dryer to shut off. And I try to imagine the feeling of accomplishment, the rush of exhilaration she experienced when the last stitch was in place and she could say, "it is finished."
To those of us who enjoy the "creative process" in its various forms, we can more or less appreciate what my sister experienced. But while we can fathom the amount of work that she put into her project...we must humbly realize that we will never, ever have even an inkling of how our Creator felt when He first surveyed all the stars, the planets and constellations that he cross-stitched against the sky...or the countless grains of sand that line the shores...or the innumerable snowflakes that I shovel from my sidewalk.
And can we...dare we...take our appreciation for all that He has done for us one step further...as we try to imagine the multitude of sins that were placed upon our Savior on that day when He hung on a cross and uttered, "It Is Finished!"
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