Knit/Purl Jam

I learned how to knit six years ago.  I was home full time juggling preschool and activities for E and nap schedules for A.  And, I needed a hobby.

I fell in love with everything about knitting.  I loved the yarn.  I loved the knitting needles.  I loved the patterns and the books.   I loved the mechanics of creating knitted objects out of strands of yarn.

Repetitive.  Meditative.  Calming. 

I stayed up knitting after everyone was asleep.  I fell asleep thinking about knitting.  I dreamed about knitting.  And, I woke up thinking about knitting--and when I could find time in the day to knit.

I looked at people and had visions of yarns and scarf patterns for them.

Jay's aunt and I used to lament that there was so much beautiful yarn and so many great patterns and so little time to knit it all.  "So much yarn, so little time," we used to sigh. 

Last year I had a lot of time.  And a lot of yarn.  Knitting got me through the year.

Repetitive.  Meditative.  Calming.  

I knit when I was waiting for my diagnosis.  I knit on the train going to Sloan Kettering.  I knit in  waiting rooms.  I knit in exam rooms waiting for the doctors.

I couldn't knit during chemo because of the IV--not so easy to knit with a needle in your right hand.   

I knit though all the chemo side effects.  My chemo brain couldn't follow the plots of most novels or movies.  But, I could almost always sit and knit--and feel productive. 

I can't remember a lot about how I got through the chemo side effect days.  I know that I slept a lot.  I know I knit a lot.  On days 3 and 4 after a treatment, I know I cried a lot.  A lot of my chemo memories are already (thankfully) a foggy blur.

But, I have many knitted objects that are the physical evidence of my days sitting on the couch, watching reality TV and knitting through the chemo haze.

I knit a lot of scarves.  Patterns that didn't require a lot of concentration.  Just cast on and knit and knit and knit.  And cowls.  Just knit around and around and around.

Repetitive.  Meditative.  Calming.  

I just kept knitting . . .

and knitting . . .

and knitting . . .

and knitting . . .

and knitting . . .

and knitting.

Last year was many things.  

From a knitter's perspective, it was The Year of Magical Knitting.