Let’s not forget to make things: bread, books, friends.
—Maya Stein, from “paper, scissors, glue”

•••

Wha’cha makin’ over there?
Flour and yeast for bread, sure.

Words and words and more words
for poems, for stories, of course.

Smiles and hugs and “wanna come
play?” for friends in the making.

Making friends is best of all.
You with me, me with you—

perhaps from paper, torn or cut,
decorated with colorful markers,

or brushes to dip into tiny pots
of solid pigments rendered soft

with water, just to play. And in
the playing, making happens,

nourishment for the heart,
uplift for the soul.

Small creations that turn out,
with time, to be treasures

treasured long after they
were made.

•••

(for all the friends in the long ago and the now)