Inspiration Thursday: My sister Dee

I am starting a new column on my blog this week named Inspiration Thursday. Every Thursday I will be writing about someone or something that inspires me in my art.
To start off this Thursday in a meaningful way, I want to dedicate this column to my sister, Dee. She was my inspiration to be myself and create since I was a little girl.

I was 6 years old when my sister was married. Right from the start she always included me in her life. I was part of her little family. She soon had a son and I learned how to take care of a baby at ripe early age of 7!!

Dee always had a zest for life. She felt it was a priority to make her family feel comfy and all snuggly inside!! One way she did that was to make hand made items for her family, from hand knitted sweaters to homemade jelly donuts (where the jelly was made from fruit from her garden!) to fondue by the fire with homemade bread. I grew up learning at her knee that making it yourself made the tastiest meals, the best sweaters, the most abundant gardens…..because she did it with love.

I carried this message with me all my life as I saw her 3 boys grow up adoring her and having such fond memories of the things she created.
Dee also infused in me the notion that I can learn how to do anything just if i put my mind to it. For example, she taught me to knit when I was 8. Soon, in about a year, she had me doing complex cable stitches, knitting with more than 1 color and so on. The amazing thing was that only years later did I realize how difficult these techniques were, and most knitters didn’t tackle them until they were experienced knitters.
I learned from her that life is beautiful and people deserve respect from children on up. I can make anything I want, I just have to learn how. And it will turn out beautifully because I did it with love.

Miss you my dear sister, Dee: 1939 – 1998.

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