photo by ldyck

A Little Piece of Yarn

Snip! A woman cut a piece of yarn from the sweater she'd just finished making. "This piece of yarn is so small. I think I have—."

The little piece of yarn stood up on the table. "Wait, don't throw me away. I may be small, but I can be useful. Really. I can. I can... I can... Do you like to read? Use me as a bookmark. Or you can use me to sew on a button. Or—or—you can use me to make sandpaper pictures. Or... Or..."

The little piece of yarn was quiet long enough for the woman to say, "I'd never throw you away. I know how useful you can be. Don't worry." The woman hunted through her knitting basket and pulled out a bag that held many little pieces of yarn. "There's plenty of room for you in here."

And late at night, when the woman was asleep, all the pieces of yarn had a party to celebrate their new friend.

On this blog in March

New content is added to this blog

every Sunday

at approximately 4:40pm (Pacific Time).

Sunday, March 8

Romancing Your Knitting (essay)

Sunday, March 15

The Visitor (fable)

Sunday, March 22

Don't Listen (fable)

Sunday, March 29

Beware the Island Storyteller (short story)

On Mayne Island...

Items of interest for writers and readers...

This knitting-themed one-act play explores the topic of teenage rebellion.

photo by ldyck

Rebellion

A small group of mothers gather in a kitchen to drink coffee and chat.

Cindy: He stays out all night. Who knows where he goes?

Linda: She listens to his music. Loud. It breaks my eardrums, and I'm downstairs.

Michelle: He calls me an 'old cow' and worse. His teachers all tell me he doesn't listen, but what can I do?

Ann: First she got her ears pierced, then her nose. Now she has piercings and tattoos all over the place. She even shaved her head.

When I say anything, she says, 'It's my body.'

I have no say. No say.

Rebecca: My daughter knits.

Silence. Then the room explodes with laughter.

Rebecca: Yeah, I thought the same thing. I thought, a mother's joy—a knitter. I thought we would sail through the teenage years. No problem at all. Then I started to notice what she was knitting. Let's just say no yarn manufacturer was getting rich off her.

I told her she was sending the wrong message. I told her that all the boys would think she was a slut, but what does Mom know?

Everyone: Nothing.

Rebecca: Guess what I'm knitting? Come on, guess. (She pulls a mint green something out of her purse.) A baby blanket. Aren't you going to congratulate me? I'm going to be a grandma.

written in 2005

revised in 2025

On this blog in March

New content is added to this blog every Sunday at approximately 4:40pm (Pacific Time).

Sunday, March 1

A Little Piece of Yarn (children's story)