Surprise!

I love surprise endings. Something about reading a story and thinking that you know how it is all going to turn out and suddenly... What was that? Wait, wait. I need to go back and read that all again. Where did I miss those clues?

Yesterday I had a real life, wait a minute. Why didn't I know that? moment.

I have a blog friend, Jay, whom I've corresponded with a couple of times; a comment or two on my blog, an e-mail offering me fabrics from an unused stash. I've mentioned that I can't get batiks in Japan and Jay offered to send me some. Actually that was a while ago and I assumed that the cost of sending to Japan had been a deterrent. (Maybe I didn't assume anything. I think I forgot about the offer.) But a few weeks ago Jay wrote again apologizing and wondering if the batiks could be sent to my mother's house.

Yesterday a box arrived on the front porch and in it I found yards and yards of the most beautiful selection of batiks I've ever seen. Leiya and Kiana kept pulling out more and more cuts of fabric and with each one my mother would ooh and aah while I sat there stunned. And my mother kept asking where the box had come from and who it was that could part with all these beautiful things. And I realized I didn't know.

I didn't know if Jay was a shop owner or a quilt designer or even a blog writer. I wondered how I could not have been more curious about a blog friend who was willing to give so much to me. I flipped through my old e-mails and read the ones from Jay trying to discover who this person was. But all I knew for certain just by looking at the contents of the box was that Jay had a big heart!

I e-mailed back immediately to thank Jay and to ask her to tell me more about herself.

My first surprise came in an e-mail last night and Jay turns out to be a male quilter! I know there are male quilters but I've only read about them in magazines and wondered if they made a lot of cowboy themed quilts or something. Talk about stereotyping! Why did I think that fabric artists couldn't be Van Gogh or DaVinci or some other male? Why did I just assume women had the monopoly on quilting? Why did I think the guys have to collect fishing poles? Why couldn't they be fabric collectors? I have to tell you, if the sampling of what Jay sent me is any indication, Jay is a very serious fabric collector.

I was also surprised that I hadn't realized before now that I had a male blog friend. It just never occurred to me that there would be any other male besides Tetsu that might read my housewifely, decidedly ditzy blog about cats and quilts. (And Tetsu never "reads" my blog). And then I thought

"Oh my gosh! I once wrote about women's foundations garments. Did Jay read that blog post too?"

Ah well, it doesn't matter. Jay has shared with me some of his wonderful collection and given me a gift that will keep my heart singing for many, many years. I hope he'll tell me more about his passion and about his art.

Are these not an absolutely gorgeous display of color?!

Thank you, Jay! What a guy! Surprise!