100 Wishes Quilt

To welcome and celebrate a new life, there is a tradition in China to make a Bai Jia Bei, or 100 Wishes Quilt. It is a custom to invite friends and family to contribute a piece of fabric with a wish for the baby. Some of the fabric goes into the quilt for the baby, and a small piece goes into a memory book with the wish for the child. The quilt contains the luck, energy, and good wishes from all the families and friends who contributed a piece of fabric. The quilt is then passed down from generation to generation. 

We collected these squares before we traveled to adopt Megan, and this summer Mary Alice and I cut and sewed them all together. We added some solid squares, which gave us enough fabric to make two matching quilts, one for Megan and one for Shanna. Eric's mother then quilted and backed them. Mary Alice suggested we add a red thread around the edge. There is an ancient Chinese belief which states that there is an invisible red thread that connects each of us to all of the individuals who have been, currently are, and will in the future be important to us in our lives. This red thread can stretch, twist, and bend… but will never break. Marion added a bow in the corner to represent the adoption.