Autumn leaves: some were very special to Dianne... and today one of those was very special to me

Trees in our back yard are beginning to tell us it is autumn!

      I think that autumn was Dianne's favorite season of the year.  It is really difficult to determine her favorite, because she saw the beauty in each season as it came.
     She loved to experience the thousands of different colors that God painted on the trees around our home.
     I must admit that all the leaves looked pretty much alike to me.  I admired their colors... enjoyed them ... enjoyed them until it was time to rake them up.
     But, for Dianne, some leaves were special.  She saw the beauty in all the leaves, but it was almost like God was sending her a special message in some of the leaves.
     It was not unusual for Dianne to collect these special leaves and to place them in books ... somewhat randomly... to dry out... and to enjoy on some future day when the colors of autumn had given away to winter.
     Today I decided to look through the books on our kitchen area bookshelves and determine how many books I would have to open before I found one of Dianne's special leaves.
     The answer:  I found this leave in the second book I opened. At one time, it had a special message for Dianne... today it had a special message for me.
     Thank you, Lord, for your "special message" leaves!

This "special message" leaf was in the second book I opened...

Three months after Dianne went home to be with her Lord... I miss her more and more each day

     Earlier on this blog, July 14, I wrote about the pain of losing the love of your life... how do you describe that pain on a scale of 1 to 10?  A level of "10" doesn't begin to tell the story.  (You can read that earlier article here.)
     In those early days after Dianne's passing, I somehow felt that over time the pain would subside, and life would somehow begin to make sense again.
     Yesterday marked three months since Dianne left us to go home to be with her Lord.
     The pain has not lessened, and life seems to make less sense as each day goes by.
      It seems that, with each passing day, I miss her more and more.  
      Gradually the truth comes to me:  this pain will be with me for the rest of my life.  It may periodically subside, but it is something that I cannot control or conquer.
     All that I can do... in facing and living each day as it comes... is give all my pain and grief over to God... and trust Him to bear it with me.
     If you read this, will you lift me up in prayer?  I need your prayers now more than ever.
     Thank you!

"Red at Night"... another fiber art piece to be featured in the Mindful Landscapes exhibition which opens on Sunday

"RED AT NIGHT"

     "Red at Night" is another of Dianne's pieces that will be featured in the Mindful Landscapes exhibition, opening in Omaha, NE, on Sunday, September 21.
     It was one of Dianne's favorite pieces... and won first place in the National Fiber Celebration exhibition sponsored by the Northern Colorado Weaver's Guild.
     You can read more about the Mindful Landscapes exhibition here:  Mindful Landscapes in Omaha, NE.

Some of Dianne's fiber art that will be featured in the upcoming "Mindful Landscapes" fiber art exhibtion in Omaha, Nebraska

"Feeding the 5,000"

"Feeding the 5,000" is another of Dianne's fiber art creations to be included in the upcoming Mindful Landscapes exhibition in Omaha, NE.

EDGE, an organization of contemporary fiber artists, will honor Dianne as featured artist in the exhibition.  Dianne was a charter member of the organization, and often had pieces of her work juried into EDGE's annual exhibitions.

You can read more about the exhibition here: EDGE exhibition Mindful Landscapes 2014 . 

I had previously written on my blog about another of her pieces that will be included:  Barn Art I.  You can read about that piece here:  Barn Art I and how it came about.

I wrote about another piece that will be in the show, "Abundant Waters" on Facebook.  You can read the article here:  "Abundant Waters".

Dianne will have five additional pieces in the show.  I will write about those later.

Remembering Dianne's love for fabric... and spreading the love around by giving her fabric to fiber artists and quilters

     Like all fiber artists and quilters, Dianne loved fabric.  Over the years, she collected a wide variety of fabric from many different sources.
     As a tribute to Dianne and her love for fabric and fiber art, I am trying to give Dianne's fabric to those who will put it to good use in fiber art pieces and quilts.
     The stack of Dianne's fabric you see in this photo will be included in the upcoming exhibition, Mindful Landscapes, to be held in Omaha, NE.  Participating artists will be invited to take a piece of the fabric to use in one of their future creations.
    I have also made the fabric available to fiber artists who wish to receive a big box of her fabric for future work.  So far, fabric has been sent out to 9 fiber artists.  If you are a quilter or fiber artist and have interest in receiving a large USPS flat-rate box of Dianne's fabric, please email me first (kendockery@yahoo.com).  If fabric is still available, you can send me a check for $18 (for the postage) and I will send you a box of her fabric.
     Any fabric that is not distributed to fiber artists and quilters will be donated to The Linus Project, an organization whose members make quilts and bed clothes for orphans and children at risk.
     I know that Dianne would be pleased to know that her collection of fabric is being put to good use!