Since our founding, the program has served over 60 artisans from various countries of origin, including Bhutan, Burma, Iraq, Sudan, Congo, Rwanda and Burundi, resulting in support of over 250 refugees (the women and their families).  As of this year, Cloth sales have reached nearly $73,000, with 100% of the profits going back to the artisans.  The women have been able to help their families pay bills, avoid eviction and buy additional groceries.  But almost as important as the educational and economic benefits of the program, many find the peer support to be invaluable, expressing to us that they are “happy to have made new friends” through the project.

The Cloth became one of only ten organizations chosen to receive Leadership Houston’s “Leadership in Action” award for 2010, and has been featured on Fox 26 News, Great Day Houston (CBS affiliate), Channel 13 News (ABC affiliate), Eco-Ology on KPFT, Houston Fashion Week, and multiple times in the Houston Chronicle among other media outlets. We also now have five retail partners that carry the Cloth’s product line, and continue to organize “Tupperware-type events” where a supporter hosts an in-home event for their friends to shop Cloth products among friends.

With the extraordinary growth of the program this past year, the Mandy Kao Foundation offered a generous new grant to help expand staff support for the growing number of artisans, and the expanded level of support services we provide them.  The future direction of the program is to continue recruiting additional artisans, expand our retail and online sales outlets and continue to improve our service offerings to the refugee community.

Please learn more about us by browsing through our website, or donate online here.  To learn more about hosting your own Community Cloth “party/sales event”, please contact Roxanne Paiva at roxanne@ogvillage.org.

~Roxanne & Quynh-Anh

“I felt a desire to show the artisans that they were important, their talents admired, and their handicrafts unique and valuable.”

Krista Scranton is an experienced volunteer for The Community Cloth whose passion and excitement has led to serving in a number of different roles: co-facilitating Bhutanese groups, working at craft fairs and sales events, and even working as staff prior to the birth of her son.

Krista’s interest in the broader world was cultivated from a young age – as a “military brat”, she was born in Italy and lived in Germany. As an adult, Krista has spent time in Mexico, Guatemala, Paraguay, Honduras, Spain, Italy, and Greece. The multicultural focus of the Community Cloth fits perfectly with this interest; “I have always wanted to go to southeast Asia but until I have that opportunity, I am so fortunate to experience the unique Bhutanese culture and its traditions right here in Houston”.

Krista first learned of the Community Cloth while attending the Leadership Institute for Nonprofit Executives (LINE) at Rice University, where she and Cloth Co-Founder, Roxanne Paiva, were classmates and became good friends. Krista was intrigued by the idea of volunteering as an ESL instructor; “having lived and worked abroad, I understood the challenge of a language barrier and the time it takes to adjust to a new culture…I felt a desire to show the artisans that they were important, their talents admired, and their handicrafts unique and valuable.”

Krista’s professional background in mission work and psychology were a great fit for the Community Cloth. Through her work as a volunteer and staff, she has demonstrated and lived her values of compassion, caring for others, appreciation, trusting relationships, and gratitude. Krista has also been invaluable to Grace Presbyterian Church, The Micah Project, and every other endeavor she has pursued based upon a “culture of caring” she inherited from her parents. She and her husband Stacy welcomed baby Luke Sullivan Scranton into the world in December 2011.

Says Rhadika, one of the artisans Krista worked with, “I will never forget Krista for as long as I live.” Those of us at The Cloth who had the pleasure of Krista’s kind and loving friendship echo those sentiments exactly!

“We are here to empower them…but their lives are changed, as is mine, because they’ve received a measure of confidence…a measure of hope.”

Cyndee Gray has been committed to the mission and the women of the Community Cloth since reading an article about the Community Cloth’s Co-Founder Quynh-Anh McMahan in the Houston Chronicle several years ago. Serendipitously, the Cloth article was published during a time in her life that Cyndee describes as restless. She taught ESL at an elementary school level and also in corporate settings to business professionals from around the world. Cyndee also worked with the spouses of these professional to adjust to the changes involved in moving from countries of origin that include Thailand, China, Columbia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Vietnam, and Russia.

After years of this diverse and exciting work, Cyndee felt the need to expand. The Community Cloth provided Cyndee the ability to use the skills that she had mastered, but through a different lens and a different context. Through the Cloth, she has also been able to express her values of faith, independence, mutuality, and giving back the blessings that have been received. Cyndee has been a co-facilitator for The Community Cloth for several years now, and has volunteered in a number of capacities, from working one-on-one and in small groups with the artisans to sales events to product development.

Cyndee relays that she originally communicated with the artisans through a type of functional sign language – pointing, drawing explaining – which was made easier because “the women have a language that isn’t written, a heart language whose words are made up of life experiences” and this commonality has led her to learn from the women as well as teaching them. She is always impressed by the lengths the artisans go to improve the lives of their families, and how each artisan has a sense of hope for a better future and gratitude despite the inconceivable setbacks many have faced in their lives.

Cyndee is much more humble about the incredible work she does – much more humble than we are about her – but she does say that “the joy I get from knowing the artisans pays back 100 fold what I have put into the Community Cloth.”

She has several words of wisdom for would-be volunteers. The first is that it is a “wonderful way to receive as much as you get.” Cyndee feels, as we all do, that it is vital that each woman retains her culture, customs, and language. “We are not here to change their culture, we are here to empower them…but their lives are changed, as is mine, because they’ve received a measure of confidence…a measure of hope.”

Two Iraqi artisans Cyndee worked closely with, Amelia and Nada, both expressed great sadness when saying their goodbyes. We share in their tears and also in their best wishes for a gentle and caring person they came to befriend.

~Volunteer profiles written by Josh

If you’d like to start your volunteer journey with The Cloth, join us for our next Volunteer Information Session, Tuesday, May 8 (6:00-7:00pm) at the Baker Ripley Center. Click here for more details.

If you scan the archives of National Public Radio (NPR), you will discover that Bhutan, and not Disney World, is the happiest place on Earth (the “It’s a Small World” ride doesn’t give anyone joy). Indeed, in 1972 Bhutan’s then king declared that the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was an inaccurate way to measure a country’s overall success. He introduced the Gross National Happiness (GNH), or a measure of how happy his subjects were. Using a complex survey developed by Canadian health epidemiologist Michael Pennock, King Jigme Singye Wangchuck utilized the Gross National Happiness to spearhead a massive overhaul to the tiny country, finding a harmonious balance between modernization and Buddhist beliefs.

The new concept proved successful, and Pennock has adapted the original survey to determine his own Canadian city’s contentment. The idea that happiness is an important and fundamental part of a country’s well-being is seen as almost revolutionary, and several publications have lovingly written on Bhutan’s happiness index. Last year artist Johnathan Harris launched “Balloons of Bhutan,” an online project that revisits the original 1972 survey, albeit in a more visual, less scientific manner. Harris went around the country and surveyed 117 Bhutanese citizens, asking them five basic questions related to their own bliss. For the last question—on a scale of 1 to 10, how do you rate your own happiness?—he gave the interviewee a correlating number of balloons. Nearly 600 photos of smiling faces greet you on the website, and one can’t help but admire the effort the country has made to ensure the merriment of its citizens.

This would be a great place to end the story; a small Himalayan kingdom, tucked between China and India, showing the rest of the world what it means to be happy. But something that Jonathan Harris, National Public Radio, and nearly every other media source neglects is that on the road to happiness, the Bhutanese monarchy imprisoned, tortured and ultimately expelled one-sixth of its population.
The Lhotshampa ethnic group began emigrating from Nepal to Bhutan in the nineteenth century, and settled largely in the south of the country. Their arrival was initially welcomed by the government, who saw them as a new source of tax revenue and means to cultivate the land, and in 1958 their descendants were given full citizenship rights. Bhutan slowly saw itself divide along ethnic and geographic lines, though the need for a cheap workforce in the 1960s and 1970s sustained the tolerance for Nepali groups in the country. However, as the popularity of Gross National Happiness endured, the king felt that the only way to achieve a truly united, happy nation (and to curb illegal immigration) was to expunge foreign national references.

In 1985, the second Bhutanese Citizenship Act was enacted, reinforcing Dzonghka as the national language and eliminating Nepali from the schools. A national dress code was enforced, requiring only the traditional dress of northern Bhutan; anyone caught wearing southern (or Nepali) garb was subject to arrest. Finally, it declared anyone whose family was not counted in the 1958 Citizenship Act illegal. This greatly impacted the south, and the Lhotshampa and other Nepali ethnic groups now lived in constant fear and control. The persecution escalated until the early 1990s, when one out of every six Bhutanese residents was forced to leave the country.

After forced removal and two decades in a refugee camp, surveying the happiness of Lhotshampa Bhutanese refugees would be unthinkable. And yet many of our artisans and their families are overflowing with felicity. It would be insulting to indicate that their lives are not full of worry and heartbreak, but whenever we meet, the laughter is infectious. This very joy is what inspired the creation of the Cloth, and what I think has lured in so many volunteers. Even on my worst, most stressful days, ten minutes with our artisans instantly turns it into a great one.

When the Bhutanese king married last year, all of my Lhotshampa friends on Facebook congratulated the son of the man who evicted them, rejoicing in his marriage and wishing him a happy life. I’m sure that if someone had offered, all would have gladly handed the king ten happiness balloons.

-Kate

Sources: npr.org, wikipedia.org
Photosource: Jonathan Harris

During this holiday season it is right, or at least natural, that we should take time to reflect upon the blessings bestowed to us.  One of the great blessings to The Community Cloth has been a year of progress, both for the organization and for the women with whom we are honored to call partners.

The Community Cloth as an entity has had a year of fantastic progress on several different fronts.  We have grown tremendously in terms of outreach, sales and product development, and formalization.  Progress in each of these areas has made The Community Cloth more impactful, relevant, and sustainable.  Here are some of the highlights.

We launched this website early in 2011.  We’ve blogged every month about different aspects of the products, cultures of origin, major events, and the interpersonal connections that are truly the joy of life.  We’ve had several significant media mentions and have been featured at major events and even on television.  We’ve increased our social media presence.  We now have an etsy store to compliment our events and retail partners by creating an online touchpoint for sales and connection.

Sales have progressed tremendously this year.  Because 100% of the proceeds go directly to the artisans, this infusion of revenue has helped create a reliable stream of income to add to the financial stability of the artisans and their families.

The Community Cloth is a program of Our Global Village, which became an independent nonprofit organization in late September.  We will spare you the self-congratulations on successfully navigating through the IRS labyrinth, but suffice to say that Our Global Village, and therefore The Community Cloth, is now fully independent and we can pursue our best and most successful future aspirations.  And you can join us by contributing your time, talent, or treasure – with the certainty that every minute and every cent contributed will come back to you tenfold.  In fact, we’d be happy to relieve you of the burden of some of that treasure right now – you can now donate online at our website: http://ogvillage.org/get-involved/donate.  With respect to the future, it would be trite to say the sky is the limit.  But it truly is.

The business progress is much less important than the tremendous progress the women of The Community Cloth have made this year, which we will touch on in future blog posts.  Globally, while the drum of progress may beat at a rhythm slower than we would choose, it is indeed unstoppable.  Our artisans are refugees, most from Burma or Bhutan, meaning they were sponsored by the State department to seek refuge in America from oppression in their country of origin.  As welcoming as Houston will always be to those who seek a better life, we look forward to a day where there will no longer be a need to seek refuge.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited Burma in late November.  She is the first Secretary of State to do so in 50 years, spurred by the Burmese government releasing 200 political prisoners, including the Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who is now running for parliament in the upcoming elections.  The U.S. has pledged $1.2 million in aid, but much more importantly is assessing Burma’s readiness to promote freedom and democratic reform.  Burma has a long journey toward full openness and inclusion, but has taken a step – small, but significant.  The drum beats slowly, but it does beat.

Progress is unstoppable.  One day, perhaps in our lifetime, the word “refugee” may seem like an anachronism or historical artifact.  Until that day, there is much work to be done, in Houston and around our entire global village.  So, during this season of blessings, we count ours and look forward to the future.

As the season of gratitude arrives – and before the sometimes chaotic season of giving and receiving quickly follows – I wanted to pause and reflect upon the theme of thankfulness.

Over the last few years, I have experienced gratitude in its purest of forms, and the lessons on gratitude most striking to me are during my times with the refugee artisans.  “Thank you” seems to be one of the first English phrases they pick up in their ESL classes, and a phrase they use freely, which doesn’t water down the value of their gratitude one bit.  Each thank you is sincere and is accompanied by a smile that belies the fact that most came from a history of deplorable poverty, violence and persecution.

Here’s an example of their notion of gratitude: I’ve had many an opportunity to visit the artisans and their families in their humble homes.  A typical visit entails them thanking me for visiting, for drinking the tea they’ve taken the time to prepare, for allowing them to host and serve me.  What an amazing world this would be if we could all view gratitude as a natural part of the act of giving, and not only as an obligatory etiquette of receiving.

From these interactions, two insights on gratitude emerged for me: 1. Gratitude is an infinite and catalytic resource; one that brings forth and nurtures acts of giving and of receiving. 2. The spirit of gratitude is magnified when it comes from one who has experienced times when there were no gifts to be thankful for, other than the act of surviving.  Indeed, our artisans are proof that “gratitude is an art of painting an adversity into a lovely picture.”

That “lovely picture” is the beautiful pieces of arts and crafts they produce and sell through the program certainly; but it is more so the “lovely picture” of a new community they have built by connecting to other refugee women and to the many individuals who’ve walked by their side, encouraging them.

One of my fondest memories of the program was at our very first artisan orientation session. Through an introductory exercise, we asked each artisan to tell us a little about herself. Time after time, we heard the familiar refrain of, “Hello, I am (name), I am from (country of origin).”  But, then we’d hear, “and I am happy to have made new friends.”  By joining The Cloth, they were, of course excited about the prospects of making needed supplemental income; but they seemed more excited to have connected to other women and “new friends.”

Over the last two years, The Cloth has morphed from a program into a true community.  Whether a generous donor, a community or retail partner, or an amazing volunteer, all of you have contributed to the success of the program…and for that, we are so grateful!

Thank you for helping the refugees transition from giving thanks for the mere act of surviving to being able to “wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving (Kahlil Gibran).”

~Quynh-Anh

There is something enjoyable about browsing the beautiful shops of The Houston Galleria without having to spend a penny. That is just what The Community Cloth volunteers and talented artisans did this past September. We went on a quest to take in all the fall fashion lines, to note the colors, textures, and combinations of trends in order to inspire some fresh craft ideas.  For some of the women this was their second trip to bustling downtown Houston and for others it was their first. It was nice to watch how the Galleria veteran artisans guided their first time friends on how to quickly cross the street when the crosswalk light turned green, how to avoid bumping into others in the crowded passages of the stores and even how to take the perfume samples offered as we passed through the beauty and fragrance departments!

The escalators no doubt brought some smiles to the faces of these lovely women and as we browsed women’s jackets, blouses, accessories and everything in between, the artisans took mental notes and shared ideas of what they could do with their own yarn, thread and know-how. My knitting group left a little early to have time to stop in our favorite yarn store, Hobby Lobby, to pick up supplies in the colors and textures we had just seen on display. It was fun helping the artisans fill their baskets and carts with loads of yarn and even more fun to see how far they have come as they checked out and paid for everything on their own. Each artisan of The Community cloth is eligible to apply for seed grants twice a year as needed. The artisans repay the seed grants by producing products which are then sold on their behalf.

Let me ask you, what do you see when you look at a skein of yarn or a bunch of threads? Do you see what they can become? I continue to be impressed with the women’s ability to work their needles or looms to form unique and precious items that are proudly worn by individuals in Houston and beyond. With patient practice The Community Cloth knitting and weaving artisans have created some amazing scarves, hats, bags and accessories. These items we wrap around our necks, put on our babies heads or throw over our shoulder stand for something incredible. Each fair-trade item sold exemplifies a refugee women’s talent, shares a story and allows for the empowerment of women. I look forward to seeing the items created by the artisans for this fall and winter season. They are even making crocheted rugs now! Stay tuned as we are also about to kick-off online sales through Etsy. Keep in mind, The Community Cloth calendar still has openings for in-home sales events, so book one for you and your friends today! It is a perfect opportunity to get together for some holiday shopping and celebration. Please Email thecommunitycloth@gmail.com if you are interested.

This month, we will be participating in The Hearts and Hands Holiday Art Market at Memorial Drive United Methodist Church  from October 24 – 28, 2011. Stop on by and visit with us to shop the latest Cloth items and much more!

-Krista

This month, we’d like to spotlight one of our community partners that helps spread the work of The Community Cloth. We have been blessed to partner with so many outstanding Houston institutions, like The Downtown Club, The Zonta Club, Brazos Bookstore, Kuhl-Linscomb and Contemporary Handweavers of Houston, but the one that is most meaningful to me is our continuing partnership with the Houston Museum of Natural Sciences.

I spent a large portion of my childhood roaming the halls of HMNS.  One of my earliest memories of Houston is of the massive Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton that greets you in the main exhibition hall.  With its cavernous mouth facing the doors, taunting you, threatening to turn you into a midnight snack, it was an image that burned itself into my nightmares.  Being a nerdy child born to nerdy parents, nearly every birthday was celebrated at the HMNS.  For my seventeenth birthday, my friends and I dragged ourselves out of bed at five in the morning to be one of the first to pass through the Lord of the Rings exhibition, and did not regret our decision (although we all took naps once we returned home). For me, the HMNS is a must-see for any Houstonian; I take my adult ESL class there every semester, and every one of them falls in love.

Last spring, we had the opportunity to partner with The Downtown Club for their weekly “Jazz and Juice” events.  We thrilled at the opportunity, for it provided a chance to spread our name and hopefully meet movers and shakers touched by the stories of The Community Cloth.  Stephen Sachnik of The Downtown Club was one such mover and shaker.  He also happens to be the CFO at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, and a self-proclaimed textile-phile.  Gently examining the soft, hand-woven Karenni scarves, he immediately appreciated the craftsmanship and skill used to produce them.  At this point, many people had already praised the talents of the artisans, but Stephen was the first person we encountered who had considerable knowledge of weaving and textiles, and his excitement was euphoric.  Not only did he suggest new product ideas, like placemats, coasters, and napkins, but he offered to pass a few of the items over to the museum merchandiser, Jennifer King, who immediately ordered some colorful Karenni scarves for the main entrance gift shop.

This was our first step into retail, and The Community Cloth was floored by somehow managing to end up in a major Houston museum.  Even better, the gift shop was remodeled a few years ago, and now houses some seriously fabulous pieces.  To be sold amongst such stunning and unique pieces was, and is, a tremendous honor.  But for me, it’s personal.  After spending a lifetime immersed in the HMNS, somehow being a part of it is surreal.  Even though many of the artisans have not yet walked through the museum, they are also a part of a Houston landmark.

If you haven’t been to the Houston Museum of Natural Science yet (or it’s been a while), you should check it out at: 5555 Hermann Park Dr. (Be sure to pick up one of our Karenni handwoven scarves!)   Follow the museum on Twitter at @hmns.

~Kate

The table in the middle of the room was covered with all kinds of yarn, crochet hooks and completed projects accompanied by their patterns. As the crochet experts moved around the room assisting in forming a knot and then the over and under motion of the crochet hook to the yarn took over as they created a chain with each stitch as the artisans began to grasp the patterns for themselves. The other volunteers in the room just watched in admiration. Conversations were buzzing and eyes and hands were focused on perfecting the technique as quickly as possible. I was amazed watching how the women manipulated the yarn into the desired patterns and am eager to see the finished products that will be available for sale at our upcoming fall events. If you’d like to see a video on the basic steps to crocheting, click here.

This past Saturday was a busy day for The Community Cloth. We started off in our wonderful workshop in the Day Art Studio at Baker Ripley Center where seven of our knitting artisans spent time learning different crochet techniques from generous volunteers, Karen, Janet and Sapana.  Some of the artisans had just come from a citizenship class which was exciting news and some had to leave a few minutes early to get to their jobs. Later in the afternoon, several of the volunteers prepared to beat the summer heat and enjoy the art, culture and community hosting The Community Cloth booth for the fifth annual White Linen Night in the Heights (WLNH). This was the second year we have participated in the summer fun of WLNH and it was a fabulous opportunity to share the story of our artisans.  Keep in mind every Community Cloth purchase supports local microenterprise and 100% of profits go directly to the artisans. For WLNH, there was a huge turnout of Houstonians decked in their finest whites strolling the crowded streets. For the first time this year people were also donning hues of pink on “Pink Street” ( on White Oak between Oxford and Columbia) to support breast cancer awareness and the Breast Health Collaborative of Texas. Of course, The Community Cloth had an assortment of accessories that would complement white, pink or any color for that matter! Our booth was set up outside of a hip, new restaurant on White Oak called Happy Fatz. You should check it out!

At the end of this month we will take the knitting and weaving groups on a product development outing to the Galleria to peruse all the shops and discover what colors and styles are popular and fashionable this year. They are already so creative in their designs but this is a perfect opportunity to give them fresh ideas so they may create similar handmade items for the fall and winter. So get ready to shop with us on September 17^th for National Women’s Friendship Month at Ten Thousand Villages from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

-Krista

 Because things are the way they are, things will not stay the way they are.  -Bertolt Brecht

 If your last personal encounter with the Community Cloth was more than six months ago, you might not recognize us.  We are a changed organization, from top to bottom.  We’ve expanded our volunteer base (a volunteer info session was held this past Wednesday at the Baker Ripley Center Neighborhood Center); we’ve expanded our retail partnerships (you can now buy Karenni scarves at Kuhl Linscomb and Muse Boutique, along with the Houston Museum of Natural Science); we’ve regenerated our artisan line-up (this one needs a bit more explanation). 

As Krista mentioned last week, Narmaya, Lachi and Radhika recently began working together in a new setting—at a garment shop in Houston.  While obtaining a textile-related job (and working with friends) is serendipitous, employment is hardly a novelty among Cloth talent.  In our nearly two years (two years!) as an organization, almost all of the original artisans have found jobs.  In order to stem camaraderie, we divided the Bhutanese knitters into small groups based on their apartment locations.  Now, we have lost the majority of an apartment community to full-time jobs and virtually all of the faces in the Karenni workshop are new. 

 Saying goodbye to artisans this way is hardly bittersweet; for us, there is no greater excitement than knowing that one of the women is earning a better living.  To be sure, the Cloth was never about providing primary income.  We always intended the sales to supplement meager incomes, never to be the sole support for a family. But for many, the thirty dollars handed to them in an Amegy Bank envelope meant survival.  It paid for another supply of groceries, or it paid the water bill; or it was tucked away, the start of a miniscule savings account.  But that cannot compare to the paychecks they bring home now.  Now, they can move out of dangerous, crumbling apartments into newer, safer complexes.  They can provide more support to their families still lingering in the camps. 

Those that stay take on the welcomed role of mentor (and many times translator).  Narmaya was and is the perfect example of this.  She was not just one of the original members of the Community Cloth, she predated it, participating in a knitting group organized by a non-profit I worked for.  Genial, hospitable and possessor of the sweetest smile, she was a cornerstone of our burgeoning enterprise.  As many of her colleagues left for work, she—and others—became the old salts to the newest participants, helping explain procedures.  One of the women she took in was Radhika, her neighbor.  Needing extra money, she talked often with Narmaya and fellow artisan Pabitra to understand the workings of the Cloth and to find a way to join.  She even tagged along on yarn-buying excursions, using her own money so that on the day she officially joined the Cloth, she would have items to sell.  Before she was even a participant of the Cloth, she looked to Narmaya as a guide.  I’m thrilled that they both now work alongside each other, and I’m unspeakably proud of Narmaya. 

The Community Cloth is not the last step for the refugee women that bless us with their talents.  We are not the end of the journey.  We are the next step.   Sometimes the first step.  But never the last.

 -Kate

“What you leave behind is not what is engraved in stone monuments, but what is woven into the lives of others.” Pericles

Little changes occur in our lives each and every day. Just recently I was informed that three of the ladies in my artisan knitting group, Narmaya, Lachi and Rhadika, have gained full time employment! This came as a welcomed surprise, especially since the jobs the women secured are still related to textiles. Another positive note is that they get to work together and further build their friendships with one another. They are such industrious artisans and really put their hearts into their work. I will miss being able to see them as frequently as before, but can hear in their voices that they are happy with this opportunity to further support their families.

Another bit of news that was shared is that one of their daughters was getting married! Narmaya’s oldest daughter had her wedding about two weeks ago. She had often acted as a translator for me. I was thinking about her and all of the changes she must be going through: moving out of her family’s home, becoming a wife, and looking toward her new future. She, too, is determined to succeed and has done well in school and in learning English, and I know she will continue to thrive. The visits where she and her younger sisters were present were always filled with laughter and liveliness.

One particular afternoon as she was passing out bowls of fragrant kheer or coconut rice pudding, I shared some family photos with the girls. Personally being far from my immediate family, I remember the sweetness of the hearty dessert of rice, milk and spices, and the comfort that conversations with sisters can bring. Family, traditions and ceremonies, especially of marriage, are significant in all cultures and catching a glimpse of this particular close-knit family was a treat.

Many of The Community Cloth artisans move on from solely knitting and weaving items to sell through the program, to working full-time jobs around Houston. A number of the women continue their craft and their participation in the program to supplement their incomes, which we are pleased they choose to do. These talented women are able to balance so much with preserving their cultures, nurturing their families, succeeding in their jobs and honing their crafts. They are so easy to admire! Some of the artisans become quite busy with new jobs, but without these transitions, the opportunity for new artisans to benefit from The Community Cloth program would not necessarily occur. These changes take place for a reason and everyone seems to adapt. The importance of relationships is what remains the most important in our lives.

If you would also like to make some coconut rice pudding, click here for a recipe.

~Krista