"There's no 'I' in team . . . or the Gettysburg Address . . . "

Imagine that. In his address at Gettysburg, Abraham Lincoln never uses the personal pronoun "I." He uses "we" throughout. Wow, that's quite an accomplishment for an orator, especially a politician. No wonder these words endure. His priority was to preserve the union, that the nation "shall not perish from the earth." The entire Address has an inclusive feel, that Americans (the "we") were all in it together.

I apologize for my absence these last few weeks. The work schedule took over and the weeks flew by. Liz from Philadelphia recently visited and we toured the town in a whirlwind, with a bit of nostalgia. She and I met as freshmen at Barnard College (same dorm floor), and we've been friends ever since.

Liz gave me a wonderful souvenir from the Betsy Ross House in Philadelphia -- a Betsy Ross Thimble. There's Betsy in the photo, stitching the flag, with the sampler as a backdrop. A thimble is the perfect prop -- I just love it. Thanks, Liz!

It's a good thing that Betsy Ross referred to herself as "Betsy" and not "Liz" (her given name was Elizabeth) -- otherwise this post would be intensely confusing, lol!

Isn't it fantastic that a stitcher plays a key role in the founding of this nation?

Betsy Ross is a Founding Mother, an American icon, a revolutionary figure -- a stitcher!