Ethiopia

Ethiopia
Children

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Knitting with Hope

Hope is my oldest biological grandchild. Before our oldest son got married and we acquired two "bonus" grandchildren, Hope was the only one. I will never forget holding her in my arms for the first time. I bonded with her instantly. She was a premie and quite small. She was strong however and from the first few moments of life, she let the world know, "I'm here world. Watch out." She had difficulty sucking because her reflex wasn't fully developed. Grandma hated to see the neonatal ICU nurse put the tiny little tube down her nose to feed her. She didn't like it and let her anger be known. She knew her mind from the very beginning. She is a beautiful child inside and out. She cares deeply about God and people and she loves animals, especially our Black English Lab, Babs. But that relationship will need description in another blogging.

I am a knitter. Not a beautiful knitter, just a knitter. My daughter describes my flawed projects this way, "Well if it didn't have a special Grandma flaw in it, it wouldn't be so special." This in reference to the red ponchos I made Hope and her sister Malia a few years ago. When Hope was four she decided she wanted to learn to knit. Grandma agreed to teach her. We got some yarn and some mid-size needles and started by Hope sitting in Grandma's lap. We came up with a little rhymn that seemed to help her remember "needle to the back; wrap it around, push it through and lift it off." She sat on my lap and we repeated it over and over again. She would loose interest and we would put it away and then the next time I visited we would pull it out again and start over. Hope is a bit of a perfectionist, yet even as a four year-old she hung in there. Then this last summer she really got the hang of it. At the Granny's cabin, she knit for hours and made a dish cloth for her Mom's birthday. This week her Mom posted a picture of Hope smiling and knitting with her friend Emily. Grandma's heart was warmed to the core. Hope now knows how to knit with needles and is also a finger knitter. It may be years before she knits her first sweater but learning to knit on her Grandmother's lap will be a memory that stays with her all of her life. Perhaps one day, this Grandmother will hold Hope's daughter, my great-granddaughter on my lap and teach yet one more generation the joy of knitting, that is not held in the product produced as much in the fellowship associated with the art. Hope gives me hope for the unknown and joy in who she is becoming.

2 comments:

  1. She was knitting tonight in bed while I read to the girls... she was sad when I told her lights out. She's now started knitting just to knit at night in bed...it's sweet!

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