Knitting Together
My friend Lindsey and I have been knitting a sweater together over the last six months. The story of how we turned Lindsey knitting a sweater for me into a group activity is just another example of how having amazing people in my life makes it easy to live my life as though I am not bound by physical limitations. Despite the fact that she is doing the heavy lifting, it was truly something we did collaboratively.
A few years ago, Lindsey knit her boys beautiful sweaters for Christmas photos. When I commented on loving their sweaters, she promised that someday, when she had finished a laundry list of knitting projects, she would knit one for me. This past Christmas when I expressed that I believed I would enjoy being able to knit, given that sweaters comprise the majority of my winter wardrobe, Lindsey suggested that she work on knitting the sweater on days she was taking care of me.
Our knitting adventure began with a trip to the yarn shop. When we returned from the shop, my mom said to Lindsey, "so you are going to knit Loa a sweater," and she was quickly corrected by Lindsey who clarified that I would be knitting the sweater and she would simply be doing the moving the hands part. I know that people are sometimes curious as to how I become a full participant in activities where someone else is doing the physical work. As I discussed in Life is Not a Spectator Sport, it is a matter of mindset. However, it is not just my mindset that makes me a full participant; my full immersion into knitting is equally, if not more so, a result of Lindsey's perspective on the project.
When people are doing activities like knitting, my company is a delightful way to make the time pass more enjoyably. I often come with several options of finely curated musical playlists to enjoy in the background, as well as a keen interest in learning and actively engaging in the activity. Not only have I learned the basics of knitting, but learned enough about knitting theory, and how sweaters come together, in order to play an integral role in determining what the final product would look like. Part of why I was interested in learning how to knit, was so that I could adapt and customize patterns to fit in a tailor-made style, instead of settling for one of the generic pattern sizes, or off the rack sweaters. Lindsey's knitting skill, my ability to carry out the necessary calculations, combined with what she taught me about knitting theory and patterns, as well as my strong vision for what I wanted this sweater to look like, allowed for us to create a beautiful and perfectly fitting sweater together.
While this may seem like a story about two girls sitting around chatting and knitting a sweater, it is also a metaphor for my life. One approach to knitting a sweater is to knit the sleeves separately, as well as the part that covers the trunk of the body. Then they are all knit together before knitting what becomes the chest, neck, and shoulder portion of the sweater, known as the yoke.
In this case Lindsey and I were knitting the sweater together, so that I felt part of the project, but everything in my life is a series of disparate pieces coming together to form something beautiful. There are the people taking care of me, the activities that I need and want to do, my engagement in whatever is occurring, and an abundance of love which all come together to form a beautiful life, or in this case a beautifully knit and perfectly tailored sweater made with love and happy memories of time spent with my very dear friend Lindsey.
I love your collaborative approach to life. And you have definitely become a knitter! Your sweater is lovely, just like your friendship!
Oh my dear Loa, I cried reading this! I am so touched, and our knitting adventure is one of my very favorite memories we have made together. I hope there are many more sweaters to come!