Thanksgiving (United States)
I have masks, a heaping supply of gratitude and a plan to make memories using my sewing machine
![Portrait of Connie Schultz](https://cdn.statically.io/img/www.usatoday.com/gcdn/presto/2021/05/30/USAT/a2b9af02-417f-4583-9431-471309d2bf5f-64314400_10157062897285272_463019344482271232_o.jpeg?crop=1365,1365,x0,y0&width=48&height=48&format=pjpg&auto=webp)
USA TODAY
Early in the pandemic, when everything except for the worrying part of my mind was shut down, I bought piles of fabrics and a sewing machine.
I also ordered bags of nose-bridge strips, after learning of their existence, along with various types of filters to slide into the folds of the hundreds of face masks I would produce one sleepless night after another.
I was going to do my part to protect America! For about three whole days, that was my plan.
Then I remembered who I am.
I’ve never had a talent for the sewing machine. I inherited this skill void from my mother, who was not about to be shamed for her unwillingness to learn the 45 steps required to thread the Singer Slant-O-Matic my father bought for her.