Heaven Help That Old Quilt
By June Friend

I have an old quilt that is tattered and torn,
I'm sure it was made long before I was born.

Of course when I look back over the years to that date,
The quilt could be in the antique category-an occurring thought, which I hate.

Without the extra years added, which set it apart
From quilts made later-all from the heart.

If you didn't know it before, let me tell you now,
A quilt that shows wear deserves a fate better than covering a cow.

I've seen a quilt used as a picnic spread,
Which once looked so nice on someone's bed.

I have a friend who was simply aghast,
When I told her that as a divan covering, her quilt wouldn't last.

And who hasn't squirmed when a pet named Rover,
Drags a quilt out of his dog house with hairs all over.

If baby needs a play mat, out comes Grandma's quilt on which the babe is sat,
And what goes on after that mess, you'd best keep under your hat.

So you want to keep the trunk of your car sparkling clean?
Cover it with an old quilt-ugh! This I have also seen!

I am a quilter and I know what making quilts take,
And to abuse these efforts, makes my heart nearly break.

You see, this old quilt deserves much better things,
For I found it squashed between a mattress and springs.

But wait, there's more to the tale than what you just heard,
What comes next seems almost absurd.

I thought this ol' quilt was stashed carefully in my pile of junk,
But even better, put away in a nice trunk--!

Nope, my mom found it useful, miles apart,
And was using it, unknowingly, to cover her golf cart!

Thanks to her friend, who called her attention,
The poor old quilt is granted another suspension.

Now it is back in my happy possession,
How do quilts get to be such an obsession?

By June Friend, owner of This Ol' House in Nortonville KS.