This 11-year-old who loves to crochet has become a viral phenomenon.

Jonah Larson found a crochet hook in a box of craft supplies when he was five. Six years later, he's a viral crocheting phenom.
The 11-year-old didn't set out to become a crocheting prodigy, but after he found a tutorial on YouTube at age five, he was (pardon the pun) hooked. Since then, he has created countless crochet projects, from scarves to blankets to mermaid "legs" to stuffed octopi, and is showing no signs of slowing down.
Posted by Jenn Larson on Monday, January 28, 2019
Jonah's mother, Jennifer Larson, says that Jonah's hobby comes completely from his own initiative, and he practices it between 4 and 5 hours a day.
“He’s much more fascinated to see what beautiful thing he can make from that string of yarn than playing a video game,” she told the Lacrosse Tribune.
Jonah seems to agree with that assessment. "After a very hard, busy, chaotic day in this busy world with school, he told NPR, "it's just nice to know that I can come home and crochet in my little corner of the house while sitting by the one I love most: my mom."
Jonah has his own Instagram and Etsy shop, where he shares and sells his one-of-a-kind creations.
With his mother's help on the business end of things, Jonah shares his creations on his Instagram account and sells them through his Etsy shop. However, due viral news coverage creating an over-demand of his creations, the shop has been temporarily closed.
As of January 15, Jonah's Instagram account, Jonah Hands, had less than 2500 followers. On February 6, it's up to 53,600 followers—and counting. (It has increased by 2000-plus people just in the time it's taken me to write this article.)
Jennifer has been sharing the news coverage on her Facebook page, where Jonah also adds updates about his projects. Check out the blanket he just whipped up on a snow day:
Hi 👋🏾 This is Jonah. Here’s what I did with my snow day yesterday. Too cold to go outside 🥶This blanket was made with my fingers using loop yarn.
Posted by Jenn Larson on Tuesday, January 29, 2019
Jonah sends some of his proceeds back to the orphanage in Ethiopia where he lived as an infant.
Jennifer says that Jonah is learning to manage money and make wise choices with his earnings. He sends some of his profits back to the orphanage in Ethiopia where he lived before he was adopted by the Larsons as an infant.
"He saves some money, he's investing some money and he donates as well," Jennifer told NPR. "So those are things I think are important in life for adults to do, and I'm glad that he can learn that at an early age."
Jonah told NPR that he wants to be a surgeon when he grows up. With the skills he already has as a kid, no doubt he'll have the dexterity and fine motor skills for the job as an adult.
To top it all off, Jonah is just an incredibly sweet kid. Watch this video of him crocheting away while telling us to focus on the good things in the world, and you'll see why he's captured the hearts of so many people.
👋🏾 Hi, it’s me-Jonah
Posted by Jenn Larson on Sunday, December 30, 2018
There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."