Might I have been a Coworker with Betsy Ross? opus 376
| 10 June 2024 0700 Hours | | History, Family, Massachusetts, Youth |
If I were born in a different era
And perhaps with a different chromosomal arrangement,
I could easily have trained to be a seamstress.
As a child, I participated with my father
To work on the sewing machine (on which he taught my mother!),
Creating a sail for my outrigger Grumman canoe.
I later sewed by myself, a huge 15 foot sail
Which I utilized to hold on my shoulder
And sail on skates across my belov-ed Crystal Lake.
Around that time, I tailored a seven foot kite
Which, when inaugurated,
Almost raised my little brother, John, off the ground!
When first married to Maggi, who tragically died in Africa,
I designed and made with her, while in Turkey,
A completely round black cape with a hood!
At any rate, it is clear I enjoy the art of sewing.
To finish with Betsy Ross, Washington came to her,
Proposing a flag with stars.
Being of English Heraldic stock, he wanted a six pointed starred flag.
So the story goes, Betsy replied that six pointed stars were very laborious,
But with proper folding and one snip, a five pointed star could be
rapidly formed.
Do check out European stars (eg on coins) and see for yourself.
At any rate, in a different time, I might have been mass producing
five pointed stars!