From generation to generation

My dad was over yesterday and we were discussing my blog. It was interesting to get his take on it, partly because Shirley (as in Knitting4Shirley) was his mother. I started knitting a few tears ago to remember her. Don't worry, I'm not gonna turn this into some sappy post - it's just a fact. Actually, the truth is that I inherited all of her knitting stuff and after a few years I finally picked the needles up and the obsession was born.

Going through all of my grandmother's stuff was cool because she had a bunch of old pamphlets and clippings from the 1950's and 1960's. It's mostly baby stuff but wow, what a window on the past! She had also saved all of her notes through the years on the measurements of myself, my siblings and other family members. There were notes about corrections and adjustments to projects that she was working on and samples of yarn.

My Dad was commenting on the scarf I'm working on for the Red Scarf Project and how it reminded him of all the stuff my great-grandmother used to knit for "the children in Israel." She lived until 106 and was knitting until then end. I'm not sure how much of it was wearable because her sight wasn't so good but she knit those sweaters anyway. It's nice to feel connected to the past in some way.

But, here's the thing. My grandmother and great-grandmother knit in cheapo yarns that just haven't held up. Don't get me wrong, I treasure the stuff that they made for me and my family but it's mostly acrylic and not so pleasing from a tactile point of view. And the pilling... ugh! As we were discussing this the scary side of me came out and I suddenly felt the need to show my dad what good yarn is. I demonstrated this by tossing yarn at him for a while so that he could properly appreciate it.

"See dad, this is Manos del Uruguay - feel how soft it is."

"Dad, I know you're colorblind, but can't you see how deep and saturated the colors in this Noro is?"

"How about this Soy Silk? I have no idea what I'm gonna do with it but just feel it."

I think he truly appreciates the depth of the obsession now.