a good son
November 20, 2011
the contest preparations are well under way.
i have a good batch of stuff to give away.
i know you’re are telling everyone you know
because you want this fundraiser to be successful.
right?
today, however,
amid the end of the semester push,
i decided to take care of my family.
you see,
my mom is a pretty amazing lady;
she’s the cornerstone of our family,
our matriarch.
she very rarely gets to do anything fun for herself
and so i decided she needed a little diversion.
i had her come up to east lansing to see me.
i made her get in my car
and i drove. . .
about mile to woven art for a rigid heddle loom class.
now,
my mom isn’t the craftiest lady.
it’s not that she doesn’t have an artistic sensibility;
my childhood is filled memories of arizona deserts,
navajo rugs, and pottery from various indigenous folk.
it’s just,
my mom’s a busy lady.
she takes care of everyone in our family, and i seriously doubt any of our ability to function at the level we do without her assistance.
she’s just never had the time to explore this side of herself.
i thought it was high time.
and so i gave her a little push
into this world of fiber arts
to see if she could swim.
she did.
her color choice was superb
(better than mine. >jealous<)
and warped she her first loom.
(look at the focus)
while we warped,
our lovely teacher, kathy popoff, wound our weft yarn
kathy was great.
she’s the perfect no pressure teacher,
exactly what i need for weaving.
with everything warped,
my mom and i sat
side by side
and wove.
in a couple of months, i’ll be twenty seven.
that’s the same age my mom was when she had me.
i don’t think there’s been a day in these 27 years
when she hasn’t totally had my back.
of course there were time when we fought.
some would say my teenage attitude was fucking insane epic.
(i maintain it was merely my not yet untempered wit)
but i can’t think of a time when i ever felt unsafe or unloved.
some moms get hope to get out on parol.
mine chose the life sentence.
i love her for it.
it was a good day.
(and yes, she bought her loom)
Bitches Get Stitches 
November 20, 2011 at 12:17 am
This moved me. I MISS YOU, both of you. Even the big wood spidery thing that clips onto tables.
November 20, 2011 at 1:48 am
That’s so sweet of you to take your mum out to weave. I’m glad she had a fun time.
November 20, 2011 at 9:02 am
You are such a good son. I am so glad she had fun and that you could suck her into the fibery vortex that we so enjoy!
November 20, 2011 at 10:30 am
Of COURSE she bought her loom! 🙂 Who wouldn’t?!
What a fun time to share with your mom. Yay for yarn!
November 20, 2011 at 3:00 pm
Aww, how sweet! What a loving tribute to your Mom, and what a wonderful gift of time together doing something fun that stretches her boundaries in a good way.
November 20, 2011 at 3:05 pm
This has to be your most wonderful post. You are so darling, and your look alike mom too.
Nancy Paris
November 20, 2011 at 4:22 pm
How sweet you are to take your mom out for a class. Looks like she enjoyed her entry into the fiber world.
November 20, 2011 at 6:15 pm
Amazing and beautiful tribute – both the field trip and telling of it. You both rock. (And Steven Jr sends his best. I have pics for you if I ever get them downloaded – one ranks up there with your epic teen years.)
November 21, 2011 at 1:26 pm
It looks like you had a great time! I’m glad she enjoyed it.
November 21, 2011 at 10:39 pm
Awww. . .what a neat way to spend some quality time with your mom. And I bet her granddog Mo got to give her some big sloppy smooches too!
November 22, 2011 at 2:27 pm
It looks like you had a great time, happy for you!
Hugs
Sabrina
November 23, 2011 at 3:51 pm
You are a wonderful son to spend time with your Mom and to do something that you both like together! Have a happy Thanksgiving!
November 25, 2011 at 1:51 pm
AWH, I love~love~love that you and your mom got to do fiber together! I must say you do have your Mothers smile! I can feel the love between the both of you just looking at the photo…nothing like a Mothers love for her son.
November 27, 2011 at 11:20 am
what a lovely tribute to your mum. My kids take my breath away, and while they also had some “epic” teenage years, i’d not trade them for anything. You are a good egg!
December 1, 2011 at 12:51 pm
Love Love Love this!
And especially that last picture. 😀
December 2, 2011 at 10:47 am
I am so glad you choose Woven Art as a treat for your Mom, and thank you for making Kathy’s teaching experience so wonderful as well –