It is a time of year we all wait for...fiber festival season. Fiber enthusiasts turn into children on Christmas Eve, waiting to open presents. It has always been considered a small, caring community, safe from the "outside world."

Well, it appears that the outside world has invaded our little community. For time first time, there were many thefts and acts of vandalism at the Maryland Sheep and Wool festival. At the New Hampshire Sheep and Wool Festival the cash box of Carolina Homespun was stolen. The final kicker is that outright fraudulent copies of the famous Bosworth spindleswere spotted at the CT Sheep and Wool Festival.

I cannot tell you how sad this makes me. Not just thefts these poor vendors and farmers suffered but the introduction of the outside world to our small, happy community.

I guess it goes to show you that nothing is safe anymore. I am still very much looking forward to Rhinebeck this fall, but I will be sure to be more aware of those around me. I suggest you do the same when attending these festivals as a way to help protect the vendors and farmers of possible theft.