How do you part with someone who has taken care of you for almost all your life?
For one Singaporean, she decided to commemorate those memories in a quilt that can be embraced.
"Bring back a part of us home"
A professional quilt-maker who sells her crafts online, Derlyn decided to make her Yaya (a Tagalog term for a caretaker) a memory quilt made of her nieces and nephews' clothes when she heard the latter planned to retire and returned to the Philippines.
She shared the process of making the quilt and eventually giving it to her Yaya in a TikTok video.
"Auntie has been taking care of my two sisters and I for the last 34 years," Derlyn said in the video. "She's basically a permanent fixture (in the family)."
Each family member also wrote a dedicated message for Yaya, adding more significance to the quilt.
"I felt that it would be really meaningful that she could bring back a part of us home with her to the Philippines," Derlyn said.
Not wanting her Yaya to cry at the airport, Derlyn decided to give the quilt ahead of the departure, at home.
She opened the quilt and held it up with both of her hands. Derlyn noted that she was "just holding it (the quilt) up and crying behind it" as she did not want them to see her crying.
Both Derlyn and her Yaya eventually sat down and reminisced about the past while looking at the pieces of clothing and fabric on the quilt.
"We later went into the room and had a little bit of a cry," Derlyn shared.
"Auntie, there are not enough words to say how grateful we are to have you in our lives and for everything you have done for us. This is not goodbye, but see you soon," Derlyn said in her video.
Many commenters said that they were touched by Derlyn's thoughtful gift, with some sharing that they teared up while watching the video.
One commenter said that the video made her miss her own Yaya.
In a comment, Derlyn shared that her Yaya sleeps with the quilt every night after receiving it.
"Even if she doesn't get to see us every day anymore, she still has this," she added.
BlowMoreGlass on July 2nd, 2023 at 20:09 UTC »
I see she included the most meaningful memory of all. Meta.
cabeeza on July 2nd, 2023 at 13:04 UTC »
Seems like too small a gesture for 34 years of effort... And the Tik-tok part seems self-serving
romeroleo on July 2nd, 2023 at 12:31 UTC »
Every person should make their own "memory quilt" in their way. I do it with paintings. Art makes us notice the other as a receptor of our art pieces. Without others, art is not complete, that's why it is important for everyone to do in order to have a world in peace. Glad to see this news.