home...almost

Hi everybody. I'm so sorry to have been so absent here theses last three weeks. Internet "issues" were just too great, and it was all I could do to get about three short emails off to friends and family while we were away. Today we wake up in Denver, snow falling softly outside the window, after a long, comfortable sleep in a bed like a cloud. This is nothing like the reality we experienced in Africa. It's about as opposite as opposite can be. And still, we had the most wonderful experience of our lives there, and in fact, might have stayed longer if it would have been possible. Certainly we'll go back.

We'll drive home today after breakfast, the last leg of a very long journey. The storm doesn't look too threatening, and we have 4 wheel drive and good tires. I'll need to spend a few days decompressing and unpacking, and then I'll start sorting pictures and little by little, I'll begin to tell the story. I think you'll enjoy it, and hope you'll want to find a way to join in somehow too.

The photo here is my Bead Girls. I call them "mine", although they're very much their own, and everyone who meets them or works with them loves them. They've become amazing beadmakers, and we all learned a lot from each other in the time that we had. I brought home a handful of heart beads they made especially for me. My influence is there, but the style is all their own. I'm so proud! I need to sell these and send the money back to them in Ethiopia, so watch my website for that brief opportunity. At the little price of $36, they'll make some really meaningful holiday gifts for those you love best.

That's all for now. I'll be back in a few days!