If you are local to Nova Scotia, you are probably tired of jokes about the weather these days. Honestly, the only reason for my post today is to replace the picture of icy trees and the grey skies on my blog with something else. (Almost made a joke about pictures of rain instead).
Now, I totally see how this cold and wet weather doesn’t inspire anyone to knit more warm mittens and hats. For example, I am knitting a sweater for my daughter that I hope she will wear one day with no jacket over it. (Almost suggested that such day might never come).
So today I would like to entertain you with some gifts that I recently made for my teachers and my classmates (I am graduating soon). The three knitted bracelets were gifted before I took pictures of them. Each had a “hidden meaning” (like a symbolic colour or pattern) that was revealed to their owners. I was debating whether I should publish the written notes for the other two gifts but decided to leave them out because the metaphors were based on our shared knowledge and experiences. I will still tell you what they meant in general.
This heart is the metaphor for “the bleeding heart” (values and strong beliefs) that is simultaneously “the heart of gold” (compassion towards others). The deeper meaning is about feeling compassionate towards people whose beliefs are very different from ours, about seeing human beings through the lens of their experiences and struggles, about not making people feel “wrong” when we passionately articulate why we are “right”.
The second gift symbolizes something that seems simple, just like a ball, but there are many different parts intricately woven together. Sometimes the part is visible, sometimes it’s not, but it’s still there. And often it’s not easy to put it together but then it holds in one piece, seamlessly. At times it seems almost impossible, unless you are a knitter… or (insert your own word). If at loss, try “a mother”.
I loved working on these projects. Looking through patterns and knitting was fun but I also enjoyed thinking about the connections and carefully choosing my words to make those gifts meaningful.
As we are waiting for the sun to finally show up (yep, still talking about the weather), maybe you could also warm up someone’s heart with a small unexpected hand-made gift? I bet it will make you feel warmer, too.
p.s. In case you wonder, the heart pattern is here, and the knitted ball pattern is here.
Halifax Charity Knitters 