Imagery involving Sewing/Cloth

Lamott uses the motif of sewing throughout her book to describe how one can recover from loss and grief. One of the first examples she includes describes how a sewer can use the same color thread to unify the mismatched patches that life hands them. In another example, Lamott compares the relationship between a husband and wife as a tearing quilt. In a final significant example, Lamott uses an analogy between a pair of ruined curtains and her own life to describe how a talented, loving friend can help bring healing.

In one example in which Lamott uses her sewing analogy she compares recovering from grief to trying to sew together squares of jarring colors and patterns to make a quilt. The strangely colored squares and patterns represent the tragic, painful situations that life hands out. The idea of sewing these patches together to form...