Ann Leach

A doll made for me by my great-grandmother, possibly when I was an infant, always stored in my mother's cedar chest until she died in 2005. Then it came to me, first stored in my own cedar chest and then tucked up on a shelf in my closet. She has a bonnet made of the same yarns and stitches which has lost one of its ties. I hope it's in my sewing basket. Recently, Isabelle discovered her and is delighted with her. She is sure she can make one for herself and so it begins... taking her apart to find out how to make another.  Starting at the back where the dress has been laced closed and tied with a single strand of yarn with pom-poms attached to the ends. To get the yarn through the crochet stitches, I had to cut the pom-poms off the ends. The top of the dress is tied shut using the long end of the crochet.   The dress. Now I will be able to wash it gently in cool water and hopefully remove some of the dirt. Her panties

As I am doing some reading this morning about the importance of community, being active in a community, building a community, and then tribe - building one, the importance of having one, etc, the book Isabelle has, written by Joy Wilt, called A Kid's Guide to Making Friends comes to mind. The book talks about three types of friends: Acquaintances, Playmates, and Best friends; and how they are different from each other. It's very specific. All three types of friendships a re important and serve different roles in our lives, but it's important to recognize that they are different and require different amounts of energy and maintenance. The people writing about community and tribes aren't seeing the differences and are blending the two. At least to me. A community is a network of acquaintances, playmates, and best friends who all share a common purpose. The connections are more casual than formal and generally require a minimal amount of energy. The purpose is w