Brand new bag (© 2010 by Lev Rickards)

So over the weekend, Negin taught me how to sew! I’m pretty sure Mom taught me when I was little, but I don’t really remember. I’m now fairly comfortable threading a needle, putting a knot in the thread so it doesn’t pull out of the fabric, and poking a sharp needle in and out of said fabric. We had decided to make a small bag, and Negin helped me pick out a piece of fabric from her scraps pile. (It turned out to be the sleeve of one of her old shirts.)

Backstitch (© 2010 by Lev Rickards)

Near as we can tell, Negin taught me a backstitch. If Wikipedia is to be believed, this stitch can be used for pretty intricate needlepoint. But we just wanted to have a simple, strong stitch that would hold two ends of the fabric together. Of course, now that I’ve started this stuff, I want to learn all sorts of different stitches. Plus I want to darn some of my socks that are getting worn in the heel. More to come!

YouTube Videos!

One other note. I’ve been listening to WUMB during our morning commute, and one day I heard this song called “You Stay Here.” Apparently it was written by Richard Shindell, he of Cry Cry Cry. The song is beautiful, if menacing. I may have heard the Richard Shindell version, but I remember it sounding more minimal. Could have been the cover by Gabriel Yacoub off of “The Simple Things We Said.” Another winner heard on that station was Marcia Ball’s cover of the Randy Newman song “Louisiana 1927,” off her album “Let Me Play With Your Poodle.” “There was six feet of water on the streets of Evangeline.” And finally, not heard on WUMB, but stumbled upon while googling for all these other things: Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt in Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?, released last summer as part of the 500 Days of Summer process.

Good night! Happy Baha’i Fast for those of you fasting. I broke the fast tonight with two glasses of water and a Girl Scout Thin Mint cookie. (Don’t worry Mom, I followed it up with something more substantial: Mark Bittman’s polenta with italian sausage.)

Allium Flora blank book/journal (CC / BY-NC 2.0 by Smallest Forest)

• Yesterday we broke the fast with our cousin and her husband, and then proceeded to babysit for their 11-month-old so they could go on a date! While the baby slept, Negin taught me how to sew – we made a small bag for a prayer book out of a sleeve from one of her old dress shirts. I’ll try to post photos tomorrow.
• We had some nice comments from Anne over at Lowell Handmade, whose photograph appeared in yesterday’s post. I love the name “Lowell Handmade” – it’s a play on the inscription found on the city of Lowell’s seal: “Art is the Handmaid of Human Good.”
• This concept of human good is incredibly valuable, and it often fades into the background thanks to the rattle and hum of the dominant conceptual framework – a worldview that makes the (usually invisible) assumption that humans are inherently self-interested and lack the attention or desire to work for the “human good.” The notion that art is somehow related to human good is especially exciting.
• In the Kitab-i-Aqdas, Baha’u'llah states: “We have made it lawful for you to listen to music and singing. … We, verily, have made music as a ladder for your souls, a means whereby they may be lifted up unto the realm on high.” Any creative act – singing, sewing a small bag (thanks, Negin!), or painting a masterpiece – is a pure and goodly deed, contributing to the betterment of the world.
• In the junior youth empowerment program that we blogged about yesterday, older youth facilitators are referred to as “animators.” While saying the long fasting prayer, a new strategy for working with up-and-coming youth animators emerged. We could go to visit other active animators in their homes to help raise the capacity of potential animators. I’ll post back next week with anything we’ve learned from those efforts. (In the meantime, expect another post tomorrow for the Baha’i Fast.)

Battambang, Cambodia (© Bahá’í World Centre. All rights reserved.)

• Wondering what all these neighborhood children’s classes are about? Look no further than Dan Jones’ Baha’i Children’s Class Ideas. The goal is “to foster learning about neighbourhood children’s classes as a core activity, through a process of action, reflection and consultation.”
• Over at Baha’i Thought, Phillipe continues to investigate an increasingly swirled world. In particular, international marriages (and babies) in South Korea.
• A good description of how to darn a sock over at Skona Life. Also a more in-depth tutorial on darning socks at craftzine.com.