Quite a Mighty Mermaid

This little mermaid has crossed seas and nation borders to be in the family she is in.  And soon a quilt will cross many miles and a state border to wrap its warmth around her.  But this quilt is a bit different.  Many times, when I finish a quilt, I find myself sending its new owner a message something along the lines of "I just finished your quilt!  I can't wait until you see it!"  This time it will be different.  Pretty soon I hope to be able to say, "I just finished your quilt.  I can't wait until you FEEL it!"

Rewind for a bit of a back story...
This little mermaid has a grandmother she calls Golly.  And her Golly Grandmother is an angel of a woman my husband and I (and I am sure MANY others) call Mama Dixie.  I found myself in the presence of Mama Dixie for the first time in January of 2008.  I had just stepped confidently into the career path of special education.  A professor of mine recommended that I do my practice teaching at a small private school called Scenic Land School.  As soon as I walked in, I was hooked.  I loved the homey feel of this tiny school with spunky teachers and a super handsome after-school tutor.  Mama Dixie was one of those spunky teachers.  And super handsome after-school tutor is now my husband.  One afternoon in late February, Mama Dixie pulled said tutor to the side.  She advised him that he better ask me out on a date or he would regret it.  He told her that we had been dating since Valentine's Day.  So obviously, this woman knows what she is talking about.  She taught us what teaching should look like and feel like.  She was our Chattanooga Mama since both of our Mamas were on other sides of the country. 

Then Mama Dixie was the Mama that moved away to be a Golly to Miss Cora.  Cora was adopted from India.  She is blind.  So her Golly decided she needed a special mermaid blanket.  Cora loves mermaids. Read this story if you don't believe me: "A 6-year-old blind girl met a mermaid in Memphis"!    So I made her a half-blanket half-playmat and a mermaid that looks...and feels...just like her.  I am going to do my very best to help her feel all the wonders of the ocean: the grains of sand, the gooiness of seaweed, the waves, the squishiness of an octopus, the stringiness of a jellyfish, the pokiness of a starfish, the roughness of coral, the ripples of seashells, the puffiness of clouds, and the streaks of sunrays reflected off of the water's surface.  I want her fingers to help her glimpse the ocean.  It will be quite a mighty task, but she is quite a mighty mermaid.  And every blind mermaid deserves to feel the ocean, don't they, Golly?