I don’t really remember meeting Tom and Marianne. I remember going over in my green mouse suit for Halloween, making butter, and following the little yellow brick road that Marianne had painted all the way to their front stoop. They were my adopted grandparents, and I spent a lot of time at their house learning how to paint, bake, cook, and eventually, how to spin.
Mom and I had stopped by to see the new spinning wheel. I remember Marianne naming the wheel Louella, but I don’t know if she actually did or if it just seems like she did because that was such a Marianne thing to do. Marianne started treadling Louella and suddenly the bright pink wool from Marianne’s sheep, Polly Esther, started whirling and dancing like ribbons in a magic show. Louella hummed and Marianne laughed, and then there it was, a whole bobbin full of knobby yarn. I never wanted to try something so badly in my life.
