Last week, my friend Pat gave me this quilt, which she designed and sewed especially for me.

Friendship Quilt

It’s so beautiful even Rosa wanted a closer look.

The centerpiece reads: “Simply imagine your life as a journey, an adventure to live, to create and to be inspired. Seek wisdom, daydream, live in peace and without fear.”

It’s a timely reminder for two friends who are cancer survivors.

Pat chose teal (symbolizing ovarian cancer) and pink (for breast cancer) in recognition of that link, and said the stars are “friendship stars.”

But cancer isn’t the only link Pat and I share. We have a long history as acquaintances and two stints working together — first with me as Pat’s boss, and then with Pat as mine.

Now we’re good friends who share a love of fresh, local food, good books, walking, and trying new things.

When I look at my quilt, I see our friendship, pieced together — block by block — over time. This made me think about other friends, and what their quilts would look like.

For my friend Mary, I envision a field of parrots and margaritas.
Florence’s and Barb’s  would be “postage stamp” quilts filled with tiny pieces of all colors, representing individual days spent with friends I’ve known for longer than I care to admit.
Carole T.’s quilt would feature tennis shoes and photos of the lake.
And there would be others, filled with soccer balls and books, bicycles, and planes.

Like friends, some quilts have a single motif or theme, while others are made of blocks of brightly colored material, bits and pieces that seem to have nothing in common.

How do we create a friendship? We piece it together, just like a quilt, with blocks of color, laughter, sorrow, joy, and love.

What would your friendship quilts look like?