The Donation

*This is the first time in two weeks I have hoped onto the site or checked email. Traveling back to the states and getting settled with a family of five is no easy feat. I will be replying to emails as quickly as possible trying to catch up. Thank you for your patience in waiting for a response as I have over 350 emails... wow.*

**I am so sorry for the mix up with the Toe The Line Pictures. I don't really know what happened but I went back through and think I fixed it!**

It has been an incredible two weeks traveling back to the states it has been full of adventure. I wanted to make sure before I jump back into blogging and sharing tutorials I share one of the last amazing experiences I had in Timor. It will be one year tomorrow that I started Sewing In No Mans Land. I cannot believe how fast that year has gone and how much I have come to love connecting with people all over the world and sharing tutorials. I also have been floored by the number of packages and letters I received. I am overwhelmed with gratitude and was so inspired by the generosity of so many. I wanted to make sure that this generosity was paid forward. As I was packing I went through all my fabric and unless I had a specific project in mind I organized it and sorted it to go to the few different sewing schools in Dili.

At one of the schools the head nun would not believe me that I was simply giving them the fabric. She kept asking "for free?"

It was so fun seeing the young girls go through and discuss what they were going to make with it.

An American medical ship was going to arrive shortly in Timor and with it they were bringing sewing machines to donate, but this particular school seemed to have plenty of machines that didn't require electricity, a factor I hadn't really thought of previously.

A lot of the types of fabric the girls had never seen anything like it. They asked me what they should use some of it for and it was fun offering suggestions. It was hilarious how giggly the girls were, you could just feel their excitement. I was lucky enough to go to two other locations and share even more fabric. At one there was a very talented young man. I was bummed I didn't bring my camera. It was so incredible watching him sew.His precision and speed on these old manually powered sewing machine was totally inspiring. All of these schools seem to also have small restaurants attached to them. These lovely old ladies were outside of one sifting rice. She gave me such a gorgeous smile I had to ask to take a picture.

I have been so blessed this past 18 months. When I think about it I am overcome by emotion. I cannot thank you enough for reading and coming on this journey with me. I hope to continue to share some of the experiences I had in Timor that I have kept personal previously. I am also thrilled to be starting our new adventure and getting ready for Paris. What a crazy juxtaposition right?  Can't wait to share more!