The Things That Kept Me Sane... Mostly

I started playing with strings a long time ago as a kid in a summer camp- little bracelets and anklets stuck in a diagonal pattern. Knots repeating over and over. Only a few were ever kept by me.

I made things for people so I can make those around me smile, and, at 21 years old, I haven't changed too much. I work at that summer camp now, teaching new campers to make bracelets of string.

2020 made me summon those skills again, in the form of crocheting with hooks and yarn. I was banished to my apartment, like most of the world. Smiles were rare and hard to make myself, so I searched for something to make.

My mom makes blankets- great big blankets that are like hugs made of yarn. She's been making them since before I was born. They're heavy and warm and comforting. I've watched her make them for the people she loved, and for the people her daughters love. She's made blankets for every one of my friends. Now, she's taught us (my sister and I) how to do that, too.

I haven't found the patience for a full blanket yet, but I have made stuffed animals and little places for my kitten to lay on. She loves crocheted things and claims every bit of yarn as hers. Mom says she's helping, but I know my dragon-hearted feline is trying to make her hoard of yarns and blankets grow. I've had her since November of 2020 (I'm writing this in May 0f '21).

The other feline in that apartment is named Clover. She's my ex-roommate's emotional support animal who I'm never going to see again, but that's another story. In my adventures of weird ways to crochet (reversible stuffed animals, milkshake shades of my favorite cartoon beasts, and future stuffed animals specifically) I found patterns to make little clovers, which sparked an intense inspiration. I mean, is that not the Universe telling me to make clovers for Clover?

I spent a lot of time making the base blanket to tack clovers onto. I tried my best to complement the big blanket my mother made for her owner, which I contemplated stealing back out of spite. She wasn't the kindest to me, so, I thought she didn't deserve the time and effort and love my mother put into the yarn she slept under. My mother said, no matter how cruel someone might be, she doesn't take back blankets. So, I decided to make a blanket for her cat, mostly out of love for the cat, but with a smidge of spite.

I finished the blanket the night before my roommate moved out. After months of work, I finished it with starbursts of gold over several shades of green clovers.

All of that was to emphasize the fact that this new hobby means a lot to me. I started carrying a multitool with a mini pair of scissors. Easier to cut with tiny blades rather than normal craft scissors. I'm making a new blanket for a hyper little dog named Luna.

I've decided to make things for love despite everything else going on around me. I just wanted to write about love and yarn so maybe I could inspire others to make something out of love. Something that creates smiles even when you're no longer there with them.