Dear Yarn Lady,
I came into knitting after my last child was born two years ago. I learned from
the patient hands and hearts of my fellow nurses on the Mother-Baby Unit of
Oregon Health and Science University Hospital. One nurse would teach me to
cast on, another how to hold my yarn to create even tension, still another how
to purl or change colors for picture knitting. My love of knitting was almost
instantaneous and was fostered by my friends and colleagues. On Labor and
Delivery, we would sit and knit while watching our central monitoring during the
night shift. It was a wonderful bonding experience that everyone could share,
and the satisfaction of achieving "project completion" was multiplied
ten times over by the Oohs and Aahhs of the other nurses (and even doctors) on
the unit.
But the reason I
continue knitting is because of the sense of peace and
serenity it brings, even when the rest of my life may seem to be falling
apart! I crave knitting as a way to unwind the same way other people crave their
caffeine or nicotine fixes. I bring my knitting to the gym and knit while I am
on the recumbent bike as a way to take my mind off the exertions I am putting my
body through. I take it with me to work, in case I have a spare moment or two to
add to my latest sweater or balaclava. I even take it to school (I am a
master's student in Nurse-Midwifery) to do during long lectures or my lunch
break. People are drawn to the sight of a woman working with her hands, and I
have gotten many admiring comments from complete strangers coming up to praise
my quickness, or express awe at the size or complexity of the project I am
working on. But I find that busy hands, and that wonderful, soothing repetition,
bring me close to the hum of the Universe. I am calm, and find I have time to
mull over the problems in my life, while my hands free my mind to go wandering.
That is my story--I am
glad I got to tell it to someone!
Sincerely, Heather
W.
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