Except that I was the one putting pressure on myself. I went through a cross-stitch faze, and I didn't hate it (and made some pretty nice things), but I didn't LOVE it. I did some sewing in high school -- I made a Laura Ashley dress that came out perfectly! I sewed my girls cute, easy sun dresses when they were munchkins. My mom used to sew all her grand kids matching outfits when they came to visit (think "Sound of Music"). Of all the crafty activities that I've tried, sewing would be the one I'd like to take up again, at some point in my life.
I tried knitting and my mom showed me how, but I could never figure out how to start or finish and I was constantly asking her to show me...again. She gave me a very easy afghan pattern to start with. I chose what must have been my two favorite colors at that time in my life -- dark purple and light blue. I must have gotten through 5-6 squares until I called it quits. My mom never showed any disappointment in my giving up. Even after she spent so much time and patience by showing me...over and over and over.
Knitting has become "fashionable" again in the past few years. There have been novels written about knitting clubs, celebrities are seen knitting, and chic yarn stores are popping up everywhere. A few years ago my mom taught my daughter Kelly how to knit. It was a labor of love -- Kelly is left-handed and my mom is right-handed, so it took a while for Kelly to really become comfortable with her knitting. For a while Kelly was really "into" her new skill, then it seemed to fade away. I thought she was just like me...
Until last fall when I was cleaning out the basement. I found my old knitting bag and showed Kelly. Her first comment was to "compliment" me on my color choices! Kelly really looked at my work and mentioned that a few of the squares were really good. And there were a few good ones...among the too-tight-and-too-loose knitted squares. She asked if she could have the bag and I gladly gave it to her. She told me that she remembered that mormor (my mom) told her that once you've mastered knitting and purling, you can knit anything.
This past year she became close friends with some of the other girls in the IB program at school. One of the girls (Shelby) is a knitter, and Kelly once again became interested in the craft. She has become a knitting fool! The money she earns babysitting she spends on needles and yarn. She has knit her youth director a hat in a beautiful deep, ruby-red color. Kayla will treasure that hat as she moves to Honduras next month -- both as a piece of clothing and because it was knit with love by a close friend.
Kelly and Shelby have run with their passion and have coordinated an after-school knitting club this fall at the middle school. They will facilitate the club and everything that is made will be donated to a local shelter. To get a head start, Kelly has been knitting beanie hats this summer. Lots and lots of beanie hats...
My mom still knits in front of the TV and in the car (with dad driving, of course); I watch a woman in church knit during the sermon, and it gives me a warm, comforting feeling; I have a good friend who is an avid knitter (she has this knitted shawl that I would sell one of my own kids for!); my two nieces knit; and I watch Kelly as she proudly completes another beanie. And they all really ENJOY knitting -- the prep, the process, and the product. I'm so glad that Kelly has the knitting "bug," and hopefully she'll pass it along to her kids and grand kids.
I <3 knitting!!
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