Sew Grateful for...

This coming week has been declared Sew Grateful week. The declarer is the inspiring Debi from My Happy Sewing Place. I absolutely love the idea and am thinking of ways to best participate.
But before that, I wanted to ponder a bit on the question of what there is to be sew grateful for.
Friends: Sewing is about friends. Sewing together, helping each other out - the friendly and easy camaraderie of working together on the same or different projects, keeping our hands busy and our minds free, is such a satisfying source of contentment. Sewing for friends is also a pleasure, as I have way more ideas in my head of things I want to make than I have wardrobe space or figure shape to satisfy. :)
Self-expression: Sewing is a practical skill but it is also highly creative. A famous jeweller was saying on the radio today how jewellery was the first art form that allowed people to express their wealth, status and style. Got news for him - before the jewellery came the clothes onto which it is fastened! Within the limitations of skill. available materials and tools, we can make anything we want, express ourselves and our sense of style any way we like - unfettered by what the High St stores have on offer.
Also in our homes - my home is a tribute to MrC's and my love of cosy opulence, and mostly because I can make 30m of fabric into enormous drapes at a fraction of the cost of having them made, likewise giant cushions, tablecloths, lampshades - all those lovely patterned soft surfaces that make a home so homely. :)
Creative outlet: Because I quilt and also love to make things like tea cosies, I am forever having to find homes for them! And that means taking an interest in what other people like, as well as what I like. If I were left to my own devices, everything would be red, red, red, with maybe a touch of gold. But the desire to strew my output across the landscape means I also get to make blue things, green things, black and cream things - moments of stepping out of my red and gold box and enjoying putting other colours and patterns together. It is very liberating!

So yes, I am incredibly grateful for the skills that I have built up over 40 years of sewing, without them I wouldn't be me! :)
What are you sew grateful for?