"always the right time to do the right thing"

That quote is by Dr Martin Luther King - and he was so right. We get so busy and we have our agenda's all in line and then something comes along - an opportunity - to make a difference in someone's life. We went to Erie for 2 wks - just got back, and my dh (dear husband) and his 2 brother in law's (I helped a little) build an attached garage, laundry and 2nd bath, onto his mother's house. His father passed away in Feb and he left there saying, my mom cannot go another winter parking her car in the barn that is acrosso the drive and yard. She is 86. He wanted to build an attached garage to her 150 + yr old house.

I did not plan to go but she emailed and was feeling a bit overwhelmed by the amount of construction and the cooking for everyone, etc. and asked me to come. I had my plans of being alone for 2 weeks and quilting my brains out. But, that was not the plan for me and I decided to go to Erie and try to do some quilting while I was there. I had to plan for small snippets of time that I could "inch" my way along, but I was able to complete my quilt for my friend I am celebrating 40 yrs of good friendship with next wk in Traverse City, MI and Houghton/Hancock, MI. I also completed a fall table runner I had started last yr and mostly completed a Halloween wall hanging - "Pumpkins in the Yard".

Sometimes we have our time planned out and it can be unsettling to let them go and "do the right thing" but I believe that going to Erie for 2 wks rather than 2 wks alone quilting while my husband went....well, it was the right thing - and it was the perfect time to do the right thing. I shopped, cooked, did some construction, took pics all thru each day and then had to go to a cafe' to send the pics to awaiting family as she only has "dial-up" service for her computer. Oh yes, that's another thing to do without while there - high speed internet. It takes longer to download the blog than to write it. And I have a Facebook page and that had to go unused for 2 wks too.

Someday she will be gone and I can never again get the time back that we had helping the guys out and keeping them fed. It was a great time with my mother in law too - afternoons talking and planning. My agenda seemed important and well deserved, but someone else needed me more.

I believe in good planning and keeping to the plan - but this time, it was right to let my plan go and take on a new plan - to be flexible and still try to get a bit of what I wanted to do, done. And that I did. So, you can see in the pics, the large lap quilt in my friend's requested "sea" colors and the fall tablerunner. I am still working on the pumpkins for the wall hanging - next time.

Keep to the plan when you can but sometimes, people are more important than things.