8.23.2007

This Is Mine.

About a week ago, I was working on my husband's socks while Baby A.K. wound down her day playing quietly with her Legos. After working diligently on her "castle", she came over to me. "Mommy knit?" she asked.
"Yes, Mommy is knitting Daddy's socks."
"Me knit?"
"No honey, not just yet. When you're older."
"ME KNIT! ME KNIT!" she repeated at full volume as she stomped her feet, making contact more than once with my own feet. I don't know if it was the foot-stomping or the screaming, or maybe something else, that prompted me to blurt:
"NO. This is MINE. The knitting is MINE."

Ever since I learned how to knit a few years ago, it's pretty much consumed me. It opened up an entirely new world for me that I barely knew existed (oh, I'd heard rumors. My mom, aunt, grandmother, and sister-in-law have been slaves to the siren song of yarn for decades. I'd just chosen to ignore it for a while.). Knitting gave me some really great scarves (natch), a belt, a poncho, and two sweaters that I'm very proud of, not to mention the enormous amount of gifts I've given of it. It makes me feel great when I can work out a pattern without calling in my relatives for help. It calms my nerves daily - the repetitve stitch pattern combined with my focused concentration lets me escape the TV, the pile of neglected laundry, my own head. And let's face it - it's great fun. Something I crave look forward to every day. Something I sneak into my office for a quick fix. So knitting is more than just a hobby now. It's innately and passionately part of me. It's mine.

My daughter is only 2 years old, and doesn't have the dexterity to knit yet. I can't wait until she does, though. I'll be there when she makes her first uneven stitches, and I'll be there to help her fix her mistakes. I hope she feels as passionately about handcrafted sweaters and socks and fingerless gloves as I do. But right now, there's Lego castles to build, blocks to stack, toy kitchens to destroy, and tricycles to ride.

And the knitting is mine.

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