This quilt and the commentary below were contributed by Valor’s Grandma, Lamons.
Maybe this doesn’t look much like the traditional baby quilt to most people. Where are the cute baby animals, the soft pastel colors? I’ll admit that my first idea was cute baby dragons chasing each other playfully around the castle walls. I still think that would have been fun.
With the medieval theme, though, my mind kept coming back to a chessboard and the game knights played in those days to hone strategic skills for battle. That became the design anchor. Shields to match the ones on the crib bumper and gay tournament pennants came next, to add dashes of color to attract baby eyes. To this I added Latin and French mottos to carry out the true medieval flavor. In looking through the mottos actually used on knightly crests, I discovered the very attributes that I hoped God would bless baby Valor with:
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Virtute et Valore – “By Virtue and Valor.” I pray that he will live his life with good character and courage. |
| Ferme en Foy – “Strong in Faith.” May he always remember where strength comes from and stay in a close relationship with God. |
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Omnia Vincit Amor – “Love Overcomes All.” As Christ proved when He gave His life for us. May Valor have the kind of love described by Paul in the 13th chapter of 1st Corinthians. |
| Non Dormis – “I Sleep Not.” At first this may appear to be a curse among the blessings, especially to new parents. But what the knight who bore this motto meant was that he would always be ready and prepared and the enemy would never catch him off guard…a great virtue in a military man. This applies to life. Preparation is all-important, be the challenge a homework assignment, college entrance exam, job interview or military engagement. |
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So the quilt kind of evolved into a prayer, a blessing and a roadmap. If the chessboard represents the playing field of life, with its challenges, complexity and occasional “checks,” then the mottos tell how to achieve victory in this life and the one to come. It’s also just a quilt, made with love for a special baby. I hope it will give Valor a comfortable place to have “tummy time,” furnish warmth when nights are cold, transform into a tent to play in and be a remembrance of a grandma who loves him.
When we first saw the quilt, we thought immediately of Valor’s life verses from 1 Corinthians 16:13-14:
Be on your guard (non dormis)
Stand firm in the faith (ferme en foy)
Be men of courage, be strong (virtute et valore)
Do everything in love (omnia vincit amor)
Quite amazingly, we picked out those verses without knowing anything about the quilt, and Lamons quilted it without knowing we had picked those verses.
What a thoughtful and special quilt! I bet he will treasure it long after he graduates from a crib.
As a grad student in Latin, though, I should point out that non dormis means “you (singular) do not sleep,” not “I do not sleep”! (Non dormio is “I do not sleep.”) Either way, though, it’s appropriate for a new baby and parents! 😉
Everything about this is amazing!!! And I’m not in the least bit surprised. Lamons has crafted the perfect quilt for Valor — I love everything about it, beginning with the chess board. Tonya and I were at the UCF game last night and I told her that ya’ll could use some of the knight costumes on the field… Sorry that I missed Lamons’s phone calls — I know she will be back.
Wow~ That is absolutely beautiful. So deep & thoughtful. Valor is surrounded by so much love. I can even feel that through a computer screen. That is so wonderful, he is such a lucky boy.
-Kelli
What an amazing quilt… I have never seen anything so deeply thought! It’s so nice to see that Granma and Parents were thinking of the same virtues for Valor.
You can actually feel the dedication and love after the quilt.
Valor will enjoy it so much!
Love
Sabrina from Argentina
a slow night in labor & delivery led to a night of blog reading, a link from cakewrecks led me to your blog…i have been an avid reader ever since!! finding sweet baby james that night at work i sat and cried at the nursing station reading through the posts…your story and faith have encouraged me to truly appreciate each and every moment with my son. congratulations on the birth of valor!!! i stumbled upon this the other day and think valor REALLY needs this for carrying his loot to preschool, and no, its never too early to pick up such an sppropriate backpack for a toddler!!! enjoy the baby fog…it lifts all too quickly!
http://www.shopatron.com/products/productdetail/QUILTED+BACKPACK+DRAGON/part_number=SJ1041/1727.0.1.1.56312.54589.0.0.0?
Grandmother Lamons is a stitch master! I love the quilt and the meaning behind the art!
Monz–you never fail to amaze me with your creative genius genes. What a wonderful theme and blessing for baby Valor. And I know he can’t help but achieve all that is before him with his wonderful loving and dedicated parents and his network of grandparents, too.
What a beautiful quilt your mom made. I had heard about it but this is the first time I’ve seen it.