I have been knitting a lot lately, what with the arrival of a new granddaughter nine months ago and the anticipated birth of a grandson (our first!) next month. I have never been very good at knitting articles of clothing but I figured I could knit up some appropriate toys. Babies don’t see that well anyway, and their parents are likely to be too distracted to analyze my knits and purls. I certainly hope so.
As I sit on the couch, trying to follow these simple patterns, I have plenty of time to consider just how imprecise my knitting is. I am trying to get comfortable with imprecision because, as mentioned above, neither the babies nor the adults in their circle give a hoot. My own lax standards are more the problem. Readers of this blog may remember my fondness for the Japanese concept of Wabi-Sabi (here and here). Wabi-Sabi–the acceptance of transcience and imperfection–is one thing and impatience is another.
I often think of my mother, a sometimes impatient person, who despite that was a perfectionist when it came to sewing. For years I could look at someone’s store-bought clothing and pick out all the mistakes my mother never would have made. Now I wonder if careful knitters look at my knitting and just shake their heads. Still, when I stifle the self-recrimination, I realize I enjoy the process of knitting, no matter how imperfect my technique may be.
Or it may be that it is just fun to think of another sweet new life on this fractious planet of ours.
HAVE A GOOD WEEK!
