Sunday, September 20, 2009

Knitting thru time

About 1 month after I was adopted my cousin was born. We grew up very close to each other. Being only a few months apart in age and going to the same school and church we saw each other all the time. We ended up in the same group at school, saw each other at the family cabin over the summer, and saw each other at church. It’s just a good thing we really like each other!

Over the years we haven’t always seen eye to eye on things but we respect each other’s choices. A few months ago he totally surprised me by giving me a book. He had seen a review of a book written by a local person in the Sunday paper and knew I’d be interested in it. So, he went out, bought it and gave it to me. “Knitting the Threads of Time” by Nora Murphy.

This isn’t a book about knitting as much as it is a book about our fiber history. Nora spent a winter knitting her first sweater for her youngest son and took that project to reflect on the beginning of textile creation and how it has changed through history. She works for a multi-cultural group writing grant requests and in the process has been introduced to many friends of many cultural backgrounds. One chapter may talk about the beginnings of weaving in the Americas while another talks about the embroidery of the Hmong. It’s an interesting look at our shared history and gave me good reading other many lunch breaks.

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