Spool Block

 

Today’s block is part of a new Kim Diehl quilt called “Heartstrings,” one of eight tiny quilts in the tenth Simple Whatnots collection. The fun prints are also hers, “Gratitude and Grace” for Henry Glass Fabrics. In her pattern, Kim doesn’t give the block a name, but I found it in my favorite reference book, “5,500 Quilt Block Designs” by Maggie Malone. If each of the ten collections contains eight quilts (I believe they do) then I’ve made more than half of them. Some I’ve done a few times: once in Kim Diehl prints, and then again with scraps from my own stash. I love these little quilts, but I know they’re not for everyone. I once donated one of my favorites to a charity auction, and it ended up selling for less than I’d spent to make it. If no one wants these teeny quilts when I’m gone, fine. Stuff them in my casket. I’ll take them with me.

Community

 

In December 1984 a hunter spotted a herd of roughly 3000 beluga whales trapped in ice not far from Chukchee Peninsula. Beluga are mammals: they must breathe air to survive. Passing under the extended ice – up to four meters thick – in one breath was impossible, so the whales were stranded in breathing pools that were closing in on them. When locals heard about their plight, they brought frozen fish for the weakened, starving whales. Russia sent the icebreaker Moskva to clear a path to the open ocean. At first, the massive ship and its propellers frightened the whales. They refused to follow the Moskva to safety. Then someone on board remembered that marine mammals respond to music. With classical music pouring from the top deck, the massive icebreaker slowly lured the whales to freedom. “Operation Beluga” took weeks, but by the end of February 1985 an estimated 2000 beluga whales were saved.

Lemoyne Star

 

Joseph "Gabe" Sonnier was a full-time janitor at Port Barre Elementary in Louisiana. One day in 1985, the principal pulled him aside and said, “I'd rather see you grading papers than picking them up.” Gabe took those words to heart. At 39, he started hitting the books. He’d arrive at work at 5:00 a.m., work until 7:00, take classes all day, then go back to the elementary school to finish his eight hours. Then he’d go home and do homework. Every. Single. Day. After he got his bachelor’s degree and teaching certificate, he became a teacher in one of the rooms he used to clean. Then Gabe earned his master’s degree. In November 2013, Gabe became principal of the same school where he used to work as janitor. The moral of the story: if you have a dream, go for it, no matter what obstacles there are. And if you see potential in someone else, don’t keep it to yourself.

Six Snowball Flowers

 

“Testimonies are best cultivated in the home.” – President Russel M. Nelson

“Because of Jesus Christ, our failures do not have to define us. They can refine us.” – Dieter F. Uchtdorf

“Eternity is the wrong thing to be wrong about.” – Joy D. Jones

“The Lord expects us to teach that inclusion is a positive means towards unity, and that exclusion leads to division.” – Elder Gary E. Stevenson

“Let us practice peace in a personal way, applying the grace and healing balm of the Atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ to ourselves and our families and all those we can reach around us.” – Elder Jeffrey R. Holland

“We should be led by the power of inspiration.” – Elder Jorge T. Becerra

“Through the redeeming atonement and glorious resurrection of Jesus Christ, broken hearts can be healed, anguish can become peace, and distress can become hope.” – Reyna I. Aburto

“My humble invitation to all of us is to never give up!” – Elder Edward Dube

Buggy Barn Bunny

 

Everything I need to know I learned from the Easter Bunny:

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

Everyone needs a friend who is all ears.

There’s no such thing as too much candy.

All work and no play can make you a basket case.

A cute tail attracts a lot of attention.

Everyone is entitled to a bad hare day.

Let happy thoughts multiply like rabbits.

Some body parts should be floppy.

Keep your paws off of other people’s jelly beans.

Good things come in small, sugar coated packages.

The grass is always greener is someone else’s basket.

To show your true colors, you have to come out of your shell.

The best things in life are still sweet and gooey.

- Source Obscure 

Manor House

 

The librarians in the East Los Angeles Library system have noticed an unsettling trend. Library patrons age 21 and younger would run up a few late fees, and then they’d simply stop coming in or checking anything out. "Ten dollars, absolutely, for some people that's a huge barrier," says LA County Library Director Skye Patrick. “This program is really to invite them back into the library, to make libraries accessible to them and their families." Because these are precisely the sort of patrons they wanted to encourage, the library instituted a program called “The Great Read-Away.” Young readers can “pay” off their debt by reading. Children's librarian Xuemin Zhong says she sees kids reading away fees daily. "I've seen as low as a couple of cents to as high as a couple hundred dollars," Zhong said. "And I've seen kids read that away because they have the commitment to do so."

Four Snowball Flowers

 

Bob Fletcher graduated with an agricultural degree in 1933, from the college that would later become the University of California at Davis. He worked as county and state agricultural inspector, and in that capacity became friends with several farm owners who were Japanese Americans. Shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor, with the eviction and incarceration of Japanese Americans eminent, the Tsukamoto family approached Bob with an idea. Bob could run the flame tokay grape farms belonging to two of the family’s friends. He could pay their mortgages and taxes, and keep any profits. Bob had no experience with grapes, but he wanted to help. He quit his job and managed the two farms for three years. As agreed, Bob paid the mortgages and taxes, but only pocketed half the proceeds. When the families were released, their farms and homes were intact, and half the profits were waiting for them in the bank.