O.V. Brantley quilting
O.V. Brantley quilting
Winners Never Quit. Quitters Never Win.
Through sheer force of will, I continue to try to make spring weather arrive by showing you spring quilts. I think of it as a small test of wills between Mother Nature and me. She, of course, is winning, because nobody controls Mother Nature. In Atlanta we have severe storms, tornadoes, and it’s 40 degrees today when it should be 70 degrees! I give up and concede that there will be no spring until the NCAA basketball tournament is over. Never one to sulk, however, my Plan B is to show you a basketball quilt.
Like the rest of the country I have been fixated on the NCAA basketball tournament. My teams, University of Arkansas Razorbacks and the Vanderbilt Commodores, did not make it into the tournament this year, but it’s fun nonetheless. I love the whole Cinderella thing and always cheer for the underdog. I love the games where the team is behind 20 points the entire game and somehow pulls it out in the end. That don’t quit attitude is a lesson for us all. And I really love those human interest stories about how the individual players overcame adversity to shine on the national stage. They are just awe inspiring! No wonder the entire country is fixated on this one sporting event for two weeks.
Well, my personal “don’t quit” story involves the captain of India’s basketball team. This special young lady is named Elizabeth Selman. Last year, for various reasons, all of the rising seniors quit the team — except Elizabeth. Faced with the prospect of spending an entire basketball season with younger girls while her friends and classmates were off having fun instead of being in the gym, Elizabeth had a very difficult decision to make. She chose not to quit. I knew immediately that Elizabeth deserved a quilt, and I am happy to share it with you this week. As my faithful readers know, the Lovett Lady Lions had the best season ever by earning a trip to the Sweet 16 of the state tournament. Elizabeth was a big part of that, and she says this year was the most fun she ever hadI guess the moral of this story is pretty clear. Winners never quit, and quitters never win. Elizabeth’s quilt is called She Looks Really Good in Blue. (I don’t know why. The team mates said that had to be the name of it so I suppose there is some kind of secret, teenage code in there). All of her team mates and coaches wrote her a special message in the stars.
Elizabeth loves her quilt. Her team mates love her, and I love winners.
Until next week, remember, winners never quit and quitters never win, and by all means, stay on the high road!
- She Looks Really Good In Blue, 56 x 66 inches, by O.V. Brantley, 2009.
