Nothing Lasts Forever

I've been working on Christmas gifts - making some pieced quilts for loved ones. This morning, my 'old faithful' sewing machine decided to jam and nothing I did could set it free. You have to understand, this has been a dependable workhorse for many, many years. I inherited it from a sister who's life was cut short with a brain tumor. I have no idea how long she used it but it has been serving me faithfully for almost twenty years.

This was not one of those 'do-everything' modern machines to begin with. It came enclosed in a desk-like piece of furniture which pleased me greatly. Over the years I've owned and used it, this machine has helped produce multiple baby quilts, thrown-together-quickly blankets for people left homeless because of disasters, and a whole slew of other sewing projects.

The machine has made its share of visits to the repair shop over the years and the last time I took it in, the technician couldn't guarantee how long "the fix would hold" and that replacement parts were getting difficult to find. That was a few years ago and it hummed along for me until today.

Guess I'm being forced to invest in a new machine but I'm really not interested in those mind-boggling machines that do everything while you watch it in action.

Got me to thinking about how nothing man-made keeps running forever. Living out here in the country, seems like there's always something breaking down and needing fixing. And not just machinery, sometimes even this human substance I inhabit fails me. Guess my parts are also beginning to wear out after seventy-plus years.