THE EYELETS HAVE IT

I'm having day zja vooo all over again as I stitch the eyelets on the basket in this piece. Wasn't it just a week or so ago that I was stitching another basket with a specialty stitch? Hmmmm. I must be ready for spring flowers and Easter baskets.

I've promised myself that this time I will use a WORKING COPY of the chart and that I will put the stems and leaves where they are supposed to be. I've also promised myself that I will stitch this one the way the girls at Blackbird Designs designed it, and will NOT forget about the bird and/or put letters any old place I want to. Just once, I'd like to see if I can be rebel without a cause.

Aunt Chrissy and I are very excited about today. We're headed over to Notre Dame to meet Father Ted Hesburgh. He is the President Emeritus of the university and has lived a fascinating life. From the day that Chrissy moved here, she has wanted to sit down with him to thank him for the influence he's had on our family. She wants to look him in the eye and explain that it was his influence that made our dad the wonderful man he was. I'm just hoping that I can get through it without bawling my eyelashes off or snotting all over the front of my shirt. (Note to self: must put handkerchief in easily accessible place.)

My favorite Fr. Ted story comes from the night that I was leaving the university on a leave of absence. I had just started my senior year when I got the call that Mom was not going to make it and that I should probably come home. So I packed up my little apartment and put things in storage and then sat in the dark for a few minutes before picking up the phone. I called Fr. Ted's office in the hopes that I could leave a message for him, but he picked the phone up his very self! I told him that I was a senior and that I was leaving for Phoenix the next morning to go home to be with my family and my sick Mom and I wondered if maybe he could say a little prayer for us? And without missing a beat, he said "Coni, I pray for you everyday". Just like that. Matter of fact, like it was something he did as routinely as brushing his teeth. I'm sure that what he meant was that he prayed for the Notre Dame family in general, but I took it to mean that I was in his prayer my very self and I felt much better.

Needless to say, I am as nervous about this as I would be if I were meeting the Pope. Or Ina Garten. Either way, I just hope I don't make a complete idiot out of myself.