By Cheryl Mattox Berry
Every now and then, a challenge presents itself that reminds me of the green sundress. I can laugh now, but it was a serious matter at the time. Here’s the story:
One summer, I decided that I would learn how to sew. My mother, grandmother and sister made beautiful clothes so I figured I must have inherited the sewing gene, too.
I picked out the pattern and a bright green, floral fabric, and went to work. Pinning the pattern on the material and cutting out the pieces was a snap. When it came time to actually sew the pieces together, I encountered a major problem. I couldn’t sew a straight line. If a seam wasn’t perfect, I ripped it out and started over.
The ripping and resewing went on for several days. I got so frustrated that I threw the fabric in the garbage can only to get it out minutes later and start all over again.
My mother offered to help, but I told her that I had to make this dress on my own. Meanwhile, I berated myself for thinking that I could sew. How did I forget that making that three-armhole blouse in Home Economics when I was in eighth grade was sheer torture? And I got a C on the project.
I made everyone in my house miserable complaining about how hard it was to make the dress. Whenever someone suggested that I give up and buy a sundress, I lashed out at them and returned to the sewing machine more determined than ever to finish the darn thing.
My mantra: “One stitch at a time, concentrate, work slowly and don’t get ahead of yourself.”
After about three weeks, I finally finished the green sundress to thunderous applause. My mother made me promise never to try making anything again. No problem. I was done with sewing.
I wore that green sundress numerous times over the summer. My grandmother used leftover fabric for patches in a quilt. Whenever I see the quilt, it reminds me of the green sundress and how it taught me to handle difficult tasks by taking them one step at a time.
That lesson came in handy recently when I had to rewrite sections of a manuscript for my soon to be published first novel. In fact, I’m thinking about dedicating my book to the green sundress.
I loved this story.