Between A File Cabinet and a Conference Table

For the past year my coworkers have been buying me lunch (usually sushi), in exchange for sewing lessons. We gather as often as we can, which isn't always that frequent given our work demands but we do what we can. We operate out of a conference room down the hall and have received more than a few funny looks.

Now, while this is all very sweet and nice there is definitely an element to these 'stitching classes' that is more like a military boot camp. Turns out I'm a pretty precise sewing teacher with something of a 'no excuses' attitude. There is almost always homework that must be completed (my coworkers confess to lots of evening and early morning sewing and ironing) and I never, ever do anything for them. And, yet, they kept buying me lunch and begging me for homework while simultaneously promising it would be done. In short, I have converted them into full sewing addicts.

Am I proud? Definitely! Very proud.

Look at what has been accomplished (this is just one of many completed or nearly completed items):
But, truthfully, we've been doing more than sewing. We've been becoming good friends...moving past a professional relationship and into a personal one. This is the true value of what sewing does, isn't it? It makes something real and soft and woven together out of could have remained unknown and uncertain. I've also discovered how much I love converting other people into sewists. I love it enough to get serious about bringing it into my everyday life. And, it is my coworkers that have taught me that. All this from a simple stitching lunch.

The hard part of all of this is that I decided to leave my job, Monday was my last day. The effort involved in balancing family and work got to be too much. But, guess what? They still want to sew with me! Next up, we are making a wrap skirt and I can't wait for it to happen. This time we will be ditching the file cabinet and conference table for coffee and the pitter patter of little feet in my house. And, I can't wait.