Wednesday 16 June 2010

The Needle Work Class

At the convent school where I studied we had needlework classes twice a week.
We started in Grade 4 right up to Grade 8 thereafter it was Home Ec.

The needle work nuns were all very stern, staid and strict. I remember Sister Maria Gouretti . She was kind. She gave me Cs when I deserved Fs.

Because of my poor eyesight to handle a needle and thread was a formidable and clumsy task . It frightened me , I felt inadequate and nervous in a midst of a roomful of clever and nimble fingered classmates. (I felt the same in the P.E. class - a headless squid)I did not fit into the classic, archetypal, regular, typical standard female mould. Remember in 'those days ' there were very few women rocket scientists. or Tomb Raiders. The epitome of femaleness were the abilities of sewing and cooking -the ones who possesed these charms were my goddesses.
The feminine skills of cooking, stitching, knitting and housekeeping etc. were expected to be inherent in the female DNA , chromosome or what have you. And if you lacked this charisma, people could either undermine you or pity you. Everyone had to fit into a prescribed box. The un-boxed ones were either weird or plain rebellious.Individuality was not encouraged. Disability was not acknowledged, specially the unseen ones.

So how did I survive in the jungle of needles and thread, paint brushes, pots , pans and laces? I plunged into the world of music,poetry and literature. I still wade into it occasionally.

God has handcrafted each one of us uniquely and has bestowed special gifts and talents to us all.It is ours to discover them and encourage others to develop their skills and abilities. This way we can help each other grow.
Psalm 139 says,
13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,
16 your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be."
Today the sky remained overcast, maybe a precursor of the approaching monsoons. The west coast is having heavy rainfall. We were sans electricity for 6 hours. My blogging is slow because of that and I also like to watch a bit of football- the beautiful game everyone is calling it that- Pele 's moniker. I don' t know why football is nicknamed the beautiful game -that 's a subject for another post.
PRAYER REQUEST
Please pray for my sister Namrita. She' s been having vertigo spells with some vomiting. She is confined to her bed and can hardly eat or even talk on the phone. Her school has closed for 2 weeks , so that is a relief, She has to mark test papers, but can hardly read as her head feels like a rock. Please pray for her healing and relief.

20 Fertilize my soul:

Dick said...

wow, nice work

Amrita said...

Thanks Dick. Ceering for some Euro teams at the FIFA games.

Sita said...

Hi Amrita,
I never fit into any prescribed boxes either--never wanted the female dream of husband and children--my father still looks at me with husband and children and shakes his head and says, "Now that is the grace of God.."
So glad God created me--me--no wonder I hate stereotyping

Toronto is ablaze with flags--makes me brush up on geography, trying to match flags to countries--I love the soccer fever---in North America it is called soccer as their football is different...
pray Namrita feels better soon...God bless..
Sita

Sharodindu said...

nice 1 ...
:)

monsoon dreams said...

amrita,
i love they ways you sought to survive in the jungle of perfection.and it has paid off,thats why we have a wonderful blog now :-)
btw,i am also an un-boxed one.

Holly, the Old Western Gal said...

Poor Namrita! She has had these worrisome spells before, I seem to be recalling. I wish someone could figure out what is causing it.

I love your "headless squid" remark. The described me in P.E., certainly. I was made miserable due to my lack of athletic ability.

There are some things I miss from long ago, but I do not miss the way people did have to conform to some unhappy and ridiculous "ideal," and woe to them if they didn't.

Paresh Palicha said...

Didi, this post of yours took me back to my schooldays (I attended so-called normal school along with my younger brother till the middle of sixth standard). Now, I feel that I was inept student but they pushed me forward so that I'd be with my brother, who used to take care of me.

I do remember the needle work class where students were taught to make baskets with plastic cane, decorative umbrellas or floral designs on small towels or napkins.I used to just sit & watch. :-)

Simply Shelley said...

Dear Amrita,I can relate to your post...I hated P.E. ...I was always the short chubby girl that no one wanted on their team......my sewing skills are still not good to this day but,I love trying...smile...Crochet is a favorite of mine....I love making things from yard with a crochet hook....love your sweet little images...you mind if I save them? I will say a prayer for your sister. I myself have suffered with vertigo..it is horrible....hope she will be healed from it soon.
Blessings

Mrs. Mac said...

I pray your sister, Namrita, gets well soon. I can relate suffering from vertigo.

How nice to reflect upon God's gifts to each of his creations.

Amrita said...

Hi buddies, good to hear from all of you.

Dear Shelley you can use any of the pictures . I got them from my pal Holly - her add is

http://bannerhaus.blogspot.com/2010/06/spittin-seeds-and-trying-to-beat-heat.html#comments

Kathryn said...

I don't fit into prescribed boxes, either, & never have. Even when i seem to fit into a box, i somehow twist it so it isn't quite like everyone else. I don't do this on purpose!

Praying for your sister, & for you, & all your family. Do the monsoons give you any relief from heat?

Donetta said...

Hello Dear Lady
You are fearfully and wonderfully made. I will pray for you and her upon my remembrance. Peace be with you.

Nadwrażliwiec said...

I think people thinks in this way because it's... Easy. I didn't play with dolls, when I was little girl, but I played with animals and wanted to have a farm. But I believe God don't want stereotypes and He created us variously. I greet You very heartly :)

Mel Avila Alarilla said...

Yes, definitely, I will pray for your sister Namrita and for yourself too. You may have been severely handicapped when you were in school doing needle work and other girlie stuffs which were very easy with other girls but which made you struggle so much because of your impaired vision. But as you say, God made us fearfully and wonderfully and each one of us is a masterpiece as far as the Master Potter is concerned. It's just great that you were able to find your niche in God's scheme of things and now you are a shepherdess of souls. God bless you more for that. By your courageous and steadfast testimony for the Lord, you were able to let your light shine in the darkness of the cyber world. As the Bible says, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest field" (Matthew 9:37-38). Thanks for the post. God bless you all always.

Sita said...

@Mel: I love what you wrote about Amrita..."shepherdess of souls"--so true..we love u, dear sister!

seema gupta said...

very creative and nice work

regards

Glennis said...

I am no good at embroidery too fiddly for me, I don't like to sit still for so long either. I can appreciate other peoples good work though.

Nadwrażliwiec said...

Amrita, I have idea: You wrote that You want to have the last post from my blog in English. Maybe I will translate it on my own (because the translator from Google didn't translate it very well) and I will send You it by email?

Amrita said...

Dear friend s thanks you for you r words of kindness and understanding.

Mel, I fall far sharot of what you said. I feel more like a lost sheep crying for the Good Shepherd to rescue me.

Dear Zimb, please translate the post so I can share it.

Dear Seema so please to make your aquaintance. Thank you for visiting.

Ho Glennis enjoyed your holiday photos.

Amrita said...

I want to say that when I visit your blog and see your talents and gifts displayed I am thrilled and praise God for them