Sylvie is one of my favorite portrait subjects at the Mansion. She is thoughtful and filled with conviction, she is a member of the Jehovah’s Witnesses and is often sitting on a sofa in the Mansion studying religious texts, she calls it her homework.

In my writing class, she writes powerful about the effects of mental illness on her life, she lost two lovers along the way.

I gave Sylvie this new wool hat the other day, and she loves it. I am learning that the elderly often have chilly heads, and they love wool hats, especially those with some color. Much of the body’s heat escapes through the head, so the wool caps matter.

Everyone who wants one at the Mansion now has one.

I feel close to Sylvie, another of those connections I’m not sure I totally understand, but accept.

Sylvie loves to get letters and she has made some beautiful friends in that way. You can write her care of Sylvie, 11 S. Union Avenue, Cambridge, N.Y., 12816.

This week, I hope to move ahead with our plans to create a Geranium Garden for the Mansion in the Great Room there. Those who care for the garden will have first choice of the flowers when they boolm.