Most women know how to do it. They will readily share this fact with you, although they may not presently engage in the activity. A surprising number of men know how to do it as well. But if they put it to use they seem less likely to tell, unless asked, and you don’t tend to see them on a bus or in a park in earnest application of the endeavour.
It’s a private activity rather than a public one. The origins are ancient. It’s rhythmical, productive, fun to watch. It can be therepeutic, a craft, an art, – a philosophy!.
Knit two. Purl two. Purl two. Knit two. On two rows, multiple of four stitiches. Double moss stitch.
Knitting.
We seem to recall exactly where and how and when we learned to knit in much the same way we can pinpoint our whereabouts upon learning of the death of John F Kennedy or Princess Diana. I was five years old sitting in a sloped nook on flowered chintz watching an aunt knit a garment directly onto one of my dolls. I clamored to be taught and she did so. Now, to one who has to frown in concentration to think what she had for dinner yesterday, this memory is phenomenal and worth noting. I have been knitting ever since across more than half a century.
Knit Two Purl Two Knit Two Purl Two. On an even number of stitches. Ribbing.
A period of sleeplessness with wooly sheep jumping over fences, endlessly and endlessly and wide-awake, led to the obvious idea of mental knitting. Almost instant slumber! I shared this with others and they also discovered that nocturnal, knitting-in-the-mind can be a cure for insomnia, the product not a garment but a pattern of sweet dreams.
One man told me he knits when he watches tv so he won’t gobble down popcorn. More than one person knits to combat the craving for a cigarette. Knitting when angry or sorrowful and then ripping out the stitches can be an effective catharsis, a beneficial way of letting go.
Knit Two Purl Two Pass Knit stitches over. Cable made.
More and more people are knitting in public places and inevitably I will begin a conversation with someone I encounter or someone will approach me if I am clicking away. I knit in waiting rooms, on airplanes, at a son’s graduation, in Quaker meeting, in parks and at conferences. It can be done silently. I knit the experience into the piece so a sweater or a scarf or a bedspread is functional as well as meaningful.
Other knitters have also told me of that weird and wonderful experience of trying an old pattern such as Aran or FairIsle and finding the hands seem to move confidently with some ancient knowing.
Seekers of self awareness, meditaters, who are exploring the truth of not trying to control the mind with the mind but finding the mind automatically stills when the body is truly inhabitated, use knitting as a tool to come back to the moment, to live in the now.
From socks to enlightenment. Knitting.