what is value? This is a family's "favorite wooden spoon," made by an anonymous Haitian*, and sold cheap at an import store. It became the basis for another essay on the value of a wooden spoon, and has become part of this one. The economy of wares: the value of a wooden spoonWhen I can, I sell wooden spoons and bowls direct, person to person. I want people to be able to handle things, see some of the process, chat, build relationships — and burn less gas…. If all exchange happened that way, in time, perhaps, the value of things would change from dollars and numbers to life and love. In the . . .