On Friday I got word that a good friend had passed away. The details don’t matter, I guess, but hearing the news as people discovered it was terrible.

Kim & I met online, but she wasn’t just my “online” friend. It didn’t matter that we hadn’t actually met in person until last October. We had a lot in common, and she always said she’d take me on a tour of quilts in Amish country near her home.

She wasn’t a quilter, but she loved my quilts and always encouraged me.

@andrea_r Yep. You do awesome work lady. 🙂

— Kim Parsell (@kimparsell) December 13, 2014

By Saturday, news was still spreading, tears were still flowing, and I was beside myself. I had to do something, but there was nothing helpful I *could* do.

So I quilted.

Because Kim was so encouraging and believed in me, I picked up a quilt I had set aside. It had been basted for a good couple of months, waiting for me to work on it.

The truth was, I was scared.

I had an idea and was unsure if I could execute it, even if it was half formed. But Kim knew I could do it. She’d kick me in the behind too, giving me a push whenever I sent long emails full of angst.

Another good friend of mine says everyone grieves in their own way, and for me, I need to keep busy. So I wound a few bobbins, picked up that quilt, put it under the machine, took a deep breath… and quilted.

The design itself is an explosion of foliage trailing across the quilt top. Some sections are breaking out into the borders. It’s a celebration of life – a life well-lived.

I only have a vague idea of what to quilt in the background, between the leaves and loops and fantastical flowers, but I’ll forge ahead anyway.

I’m not even sure what will happen to this particular quilt when it’s done. I only know that every time I see I’ll think of it as Kim’s Quilt.