Connie asked me to take her picture today at the Mansion Assisted Care Facility so I could send it to Maria with her message: “Come home. We miss you!” Me too. I told Connie Maria will be home Sunday and will visit the Mansion once she gets some sleep.
Meanwhile, Connie was surrounded with newly arrived boxes of yarn (and thanks for the patterns.).
She says she can’t fit any more yarn into her room, and it was true, I couldn’t even turn around in there. She is hard at work, she’s planning to make her baby hats (the first three below) for the Albany Medical Center and then, perhaps some blankets, to use up some of that yarn.
She says she has no room for more yarn and asks that people hold off sending more for now, until she gets to use some of it up. I didn’t have a wide-angle camera, but I’ll try and get a photo tomorrow of her room, she is sitting in a sea of yarn patterns and someone sent her a beautiful embroidered red cloth bag to hold her knitting needles. She got a package from Germany and England.
She was almost speechless surveying her room, there was just about enough room to get to her bed. She wanted me to send this photo to Maria as a hello, I told her Maria can’t send her any postcards because they don’t have postcards in India. One of the Mansion staff asked me to thank you all again,”I cant believe what these people have done for the residents,” she said, “I hope they know.” I think they do, the Army of Good is on the march.
Check out the baby hats below. Many more are heading for Albany. “I can’t believe it, ” she said, “please thank everybody, but I think they have to stop right now, because there’s no more room.”
That’s a wonderful problem to have, she added. (You can write Connie and the other residents of the Mansion at 11 S. Union Street, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816. (I’m thinking Easter.) I am getting a new list of names of residents who wish to receive messages, I will post it when it is ready, thanks.
It is a wonderful thing to see this smile on Connie’s face, she is busy and happy and engaged. Great work, and thanks from me as well. You nourish my faith in humanity.
Katie Perez, the Mansion director, told me that she is bringing in some Arroz con pollo (chicken and rice) for me to take home, in case I am hungry while Maria is away (as if Maria cooks!). The Mansion is my family, feels like. Better than my family.
