Ms. Francis Taught Me to Sow
One year for Christmas my parents bought me a sewing machine. I had wanted to learn how to sew for a long time and since I had my own home now, this would be a great opportunity to sew curtains for the baby room and make valances for the living room. I opened a brand new chapter in my life...sewing.
My first sewing machine was a Singer. The bobbin sat vertically underneath the needle. I followed the instruction book on how to thread the machine properly. It was great at first but then I realized that not long after I would start sewing, the thread would get jammed. The more I tried to sew, the thread would get jammed even more. I would then have to take the thread stripper and redo the seam. This process would go on for hours. I would cry not understanding what was happening. I was beginning to think that my sewing machine was broken.
When the machine would stitch, the stitches were jumbled together, they didn't look like nice and neat dash marks you typically see. There was only one thing I could do at this point....Call Ms. Francis.
Ms. Francis was my 77 year old neighbor that lived down the street, she was really my best friend at the time. Her biscuits were out of this world. She'd been sewing clothes since she was knee high to a grasshopper, certainly she could help me out with this jammed machine and stitching crisis.
"Ms. Francis," I called, "Please at your conveinance help me with my sewing machine. I just can't figure this out?"
Now everytime I called Ms. Francis, she always told me what she during the day, everything she cooked from breakfast to dinner, she went through the normal Francis spill before she would ever really give you an answer. It was precious to hear this spill.
"Melissa, I got up this morning and took my medicine. I then made some biscuits with some fresh preserves and tenderloins. They were so good Melissa. Then, I told myself I needed to take a walk and so I did. Then I had to drive over to my apple farm and pressure wash the trailers. I am goign to start planting my heirloom tomatoe seeds soon and I had to till the garden. I went and had lunch with Lorraine and she is with me but she is about to go home. I am so tired, sweety, I will have to come over some other time darling." she spoke with sincerity.
I knew what that meant. Francis would be over any minute. She would always tell me she couldn't come over, then she would decide to come on over. She had such a big heart and she was an investigator, she would get to the bottom of anything. .
"Brian, Ms. Francis is on her way over to help me with my sewing machine." I yelled. No sooner had I said this that guess who pulls up in the oldsmobile, you guessed it, Ms. Francis.
"Hi Francis, come on inside. Here is my machine, and here is my stitches." I explained.
Ms. Francis investigates the situation. She sits down and starts looking at the thread. She then pulls everthing out, takes the bobbin out and does this crazy thing with the thread. She took the thread on the bobbin and put it on another bobbin. Then she does this knot, it's called a French Knot because I later asked, to save on the thread.
"Melissa, I have never seen a sewing machine threaded like this before. Who in the world taught you how to thread this machine, sugar." she said.
"I taught myself from the manual." I told her.
"Let me see the manual", she said. " I am just curious, now please don't get your feelings hurt by what I am about to say." she said. "Oh my, this is not what you did honey." she told me.
"I am going to show you how to properly thread this machine the way I was taught. Now if you dont' like my way, you can find another way, but I believe you will be on your way to sewing once you get this." she explained. "Another thing Melissa, your thread tension is not correct."
"My thread what? I've no clue what you just said?" I told her.
"Your thread tension, sugar, the top stitch and bottom stitch have to have the right tension. Your's in not correct. I will show you that too." she said.
Ms. Francis was an absolute life saver this day and got me on the road to sewing. One day though I was visiting her and she showed me all her quilts. They were gorgously sewn using scrap fabrics, oh they were so wonderful. I just looked up to Ms. Francis in so many ways. I never heard her say one single curse word the whole time we were together. She went in her kitchen and got wax paper and began to trace over one particular quilt.
"Melissa, I love you sugar, so I am going to give you a copy of my mamma's dutch doll template. You can cut these pieces out and make your own." she said.
Ms. Francis loved her mom an awful lot and told me how wonderful a lady her mother was so for me to get this template just brought tears to my eyes. I made two dutch doll quilt pieces from this quilt template.
As I am writing this story, I have to apologize because it brings back memories and it makes me teary eyed. I realizen now what an amazing person that God had planted in my life. Thank you Lord for sending such a special lady in my life that taught me so much, friendship and love. Ms. Francis follwed the two great commandments in the bible, it was her own special DNA. Mark 12: 30-31 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’[a] 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[b] There is no commandment greater than these.”
She wasn't just a sewer...Ms. Francis was a sower...a sower of Christ love. I took notes on all that she did, her ways of life, most importantly her seeds that she sowed into others. I don't think I could eve rmeasure up but if I could be like anyone, it would be Ms. Francis.
Praise the Lord Ms. Francis is still with us and I am planning to visit her real soon.
My first sewing machine was a Singer. The bobbin sat vertically underneath the needle. I followed the instruction book on how to thread the machine properly. It was great at first but then I realized that not long after I would start sewing, the thread would get jammed. The more I tried to sew, the thread would get jammed even more. I would then have to take the thread stripper and redo the seam. This process would go on for hours. I would cry not understanding what was happening. I was beginning to think that my sewing machine was broken.
When the machine would stitch, the stitches were jumbled together, they didn't look like nice and neat dash marks you typically see. There was only one thing I could do at this point....Call Ms. Francis.
Ms. Francis was my 77 year old neighbor that lived down the street, she was really my best friend at the time. Her biscuits were out of this world. She'd been sewing clothes since she was knee high to a grasshopper, certainly she could help me out with this jammed machine and stitching crisis.
"Ms. Francis," I called, "Please at your conveinance help me with my sewing machine. I just can't figure this out?"
Now everytime I called Ms. Francis, she always told me what she during the day, everything she cooked from breakfast to dinner, she went through the normal Francis spill before she would ever really give you an answer. It was precious to hear this spill.
"Melissa, I got up this morning and took my medicine. I then made some biscuits with some fresh preserves and tenderloins. They were so good Melissa. Then, I told myself I needed to take a walk and so I did. Then I had to drive over to my apple farm and pressure wash the trailers. I am goign to start planting my heirloom tomatoe seeds soon and I had to till the garden. I went and had lunch with Lorraine and she is with me but she is about to go home. I am so tired, sweety, I will have to come over some other time darling." she spoke with sincerity.
I knew what that meant. Francis would be over any minute. She would always tell me she couldn't come over, then she would decide to come on over. She had such a big heart and she was an investigator, she would get to the bottom of anything. .
"Brian, Ms. Francis is on her way over to help me with my sewing machine." I yelled. No sooner had I said this that guess who pulls up in the oldsmobile, you guessed it, Ms. Francis.
"Hi Francis, come on inside. Here is my machine, and here is my stitches." I explained.
Ms. Francis investigates the situation. She sits down and starts looking at the thread. She then pulls everthing out, takes the bobbin out and does this crazy thing with the thread. She took the thread on the bobbin and put it on another bobbin. Then she does this knot, it's called a French Knot because I later asked, to save on the thread.
"Melissa, I have never seen a sewing machine threaded like this before. Who in the world taught you how to thread this machine, sugar." she said.
"I taught myself from the manual." I told her.
"Let me see the manual", she said. " I am just curious, now please don't get your feelings hurt by what I am about to say." she said. "Oh my, this is not what you did honey." she told me.
"I am going to show you how to properly thread this machine the way I was taught. Now if you dont' like my way, you can find another way, but I believe you will be on your way to sewing once you get this." she explained. "Another thing Melissa, your thread tension is not correct."
"My thread what? I've no clue what you just said?" I told her.
"Your thread tension, sugar, the top stitch and bottom stitch have to have the right tension. Your's in not correct. I will show you that too." she said.
Ms. Francis was an absolute life saver this day and got me on the road to sewing. One day though I was visiting her and she showed me all her quilts. They were gorgously sewn using scrap fabrics, oh they were so wonderful. I just looked up to Ms. Francis in so many ways. I never heard her say one single curse word the whole time we were together. She went in her kitchen and got wax paper and began to trace over one particular quilt.
"Melissa, I love you sugar, so I am going to give you a copy of my mamma's dutch doll template. You can cut these pieces out and make your own." she said.
Ms. Francis loved her mom an awful lot and told me how wonderful a lady her mother was so for me to get this template just brought tears to my eyes. I made two dutch doll quilt pieces from this quilt template.
As I am writing this story, I have to apologize because it brings back memories and it makes me teary eyed. I realizen now what an amazing person that God had planted in my life. Thank you Lord for sending such a special lady in my life that taught me so much, friendship and love. Ms. Francis follwed the two great commandments in the bible, it was her own special DNA. Mark 12: 30-31 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’[a] 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[b] There is no commandment greater than these.”
She wasn't just a sewer...Ms. Francis was a sower...a sower of Christ love. I took notes on all that she did, her ways of life, most importantly her seeds that she sowed into others. I don't think I could eve rmeasure up but if I could be like anyone, it would be Ms. Francis.
Praise the Lord Ms. Francis is still with us and I am planning to visit her real soon.
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