Bindings

Bindings are the things that hold us together. Families are bound together as one. Quilts, too. are held together by bindings. Did you every think, really think about the definition of the word bindings.

Dictionary .Com says
bind·ing
  1. the act of fastening, securing, uniting, or the like.
2. anything that binds.
3. the covering within which the leaves of a book are bound.
4. a strip of material that protects or decorates the edge of a tablecloth, rug, etc.
5. Skiing. a mechanical device on a ski, usually made of metal that fastens the boot securely to the ski.
–adjective
6. that binds; restrictive.
7. having power to bind or oblige; obligatory: a binding promise.

We are bound to our families by blood, culture, heritage, and history. Love of family, is like the love we put into each of our quilts not matter where they go or who we are sending them to. We are giving a bit of ourselves to the receiver of each quilt. We are forever binding ourselves to the recipient of the quilt.

Our ties to our family are strong and they are binding, even when we move many miles away or try to break away. Living far from family today allows us more communication than in the past because of the Internet, and even face-to-face interactions with Skype. Times have changed from when I was a child and letters were the main stay of communication with family far away. Phone calls were very few and far between when we were stationed overseas, if ever. The bound to family was still there and stood the test of time.

Bindings can also have a negative meaning in that they are restrictive. Our children often feel that restrictive bond when we tell them no they cannot do certain things. They feel we are over protective and mean, but it is the bond of love that makes us so. We are united with them and fastened to them for all time and it is this bond that makes us want to protect them and keep them safe, the binding together for the safety and protection of all.

Binding protects the edges of our quilts and helps keep them form wearing out. IT holds the quilt together and ties it all together. If the binding is not a frame or a complement to the quilt it detracts instead of unites the quilt. The binding in a family at times can do the same, for if we hold on too tightly our children rebel and run from us. The binding is there to protect, not to restrict. It is what holds us together as one. Our families like the binding on a quilt are what protect us from the outside. Bindings are a good thing, even if we at times feel that they are not the most fun to sew on a quilt.