The Christmas Tree Affair

There has been much ado in the news and on local radio about the Chase Bank in Southlake, TX taking down a Christmas tree in their lobby.  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40492366.  I found the article while I was at work and listened to people phone in with comments to my favorite radio station during my 30 minute drive home.  It took me awhile to process it, but I realized I did not see this situation the majority of my fellow believers in Christ and Christmas celebrants do.

On one hand, I will agree with most that I think it is pretty silly for people to be offended by an inanimate piece of decor and that the bank felt the need to take it down.

On the other hand, I am kind of happy this happened.  I hope that this will serve as a moment to step back and consider some things this Christmas.  I know it has for me.  I think too often we, American Christians, rely on our outward symbols to tell others about Jesus.  We proclaim it in our bumper stickers.  We wear it on our t-shirts or in the jewelry around our necks.  We build buildings.  We erect ornate Christmas trees and flock our windows with "Merry CHRISTmas."  But we sometimes fail to let the message penetrate to our hearts and radiate back out from there. What does our message sound like when we take away our outward symbols?  Are we breathing in Christ's Word, so that the words we speak are filled with Him?  Are we allowing the love of Jesus to live in us, so that they know we are His disciples by our love for one another?

I write this as a challenge to myself, more than anyone else, as I await the celebration of the birth of Jesus this Christmas.  May He be brought to life in new and amazing ways this season in my heart and mind, and my you see it in me and not my t-shirt.

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Giving It Away

My first prayer shawl has been blessed and given away.  The donated scratchy cream wool yarn that was my first crocheted piece has found a home.  Honestly, I never thought it would.  The shawls that are normally produced by the knitting circle are from soft, colorful yarns that you just can't wait to envelope you.  This shawl was heavy and somewhat stiff, and I was OK with it sitting in the tub of undesignated shawls until the moths ate it.  Then, God opened my eyes to the perfect recipient. 

On Wednesday nights, Andrew & I attend a small worship service at our church.  By small, I mean there are usually 10 of us in a small chapel that has a maximum seating of 25 people.  We are also the youngest participants by at least 30 years, but we love meeting with this small band for Bible study and prayer.  Two weeks ago, one of the ladies in our group asked for prayer for her brother, who is dying of cancer.  I saw how heavily this weighed on her - it's a kind of "scratchy wool time" in her life.  My prayer for her is that in this scratchy wool time, she will also feel the weight of God's love and presence as she wears this shawl. 

A Knitter's Nightmare

My visit to the yarn shop, inspired my latest scarf project with some super fuzzy novelty yarn knit on size 15 needles for a nice loose and lacy look. This was a really fun project, but it has not been without difficulties as well. 

First of all, when novelty yarn gets tangled . . .Oye!  This was doubled by the fact that my yarn was actually two strands - a fuzzy strand and a strand with little blocks on it.

The plus side, which I will sandwich between my negatives, is that knitting a scarf out of one skein of yarn is a quick project.  I started this on Sunday, and should have been done with it last night.  That brings me to my second negative point, which technically could happen with any project.

This is actually the first knitting project I have almost finished, so as I came to the end of my yarn I began looking for instructions on casting off.  I found a video on ehow.com and then printed instructions in a prayer shawl book.  It looked easy enough, so I decided to go for it on my own.  Things were going beautifully and my excitement was building with every stitch that was finished.  But, I evidently got overconfident on my next to last stitch and as I was pulling it over, both feel off my needle.  In my desperation to hold on to that last string, the nice lacy scarf began to unravel.  My cry of despair was so loud that my husband thought I had hurt myself with those size 15 needles, which he calls ninja needles. 

My only hope is that one of the master knitters at church will be able to help me salvage this project and fix my casting off slip up.  Otherwise, all I know to do is unravel and start over.  Any other suggestions are most welcome. 

Knit vs. Crochet

Being new to knitting, I adopted the mindset that free yarn is good yarn.  So, when some old scratchy cream colored wool yarn was donated to my church's prayer shawl ministry I accepted it.  The first thing that comes to mind with cream colored wool is cable knit, however, looking at my mistaken riddled rectangle of knitting I didn't feel ready for cable knitting. 

I borrowed a book of prayer shawl patterns that included knitting and crocheting. The beginner crochet shawl had a nice pattern to it that would complement the cream color.  So, I called on my mom's expertise once again for a lesson in crochet.  In the words of my friend Debbie E, "Oh my golly!"  Another new world has been opened up to me with the addition of set of crochet hooks size from E to P. 

Now I am torn between knitting and crocheting.  Knitting offers the ability to do neat things like cable knit and argyle patterns.  But, crocheting is fast and easy.  I was able to crochet in two days more than I have been able to knit in a month.  I finished my crochet prayer shawl in 10 days.  I think I will just have to rotate - crochet one, knit one, crochet one, knit one.  So many choices and options.

The Sassy Spinster

I was overwhelmed the first time I walked through the yarn and needlework section of Michael's, but yesterday when I walked into The Sassy Spinster (or the Sassy Sheep as I like to call it because of the logo).  I was completely speechless.  My mom and I decided to take a  little field trip to explore the Town Square and historic homes of Lancaster, TX (pronounced more like Link-aster and said really fast).  And that is where we found the ultimate yarn store.  All the yarns are made of natural fibers from bamboo, alpaca, yak, and even recycled material like Indian saris.  The colors and textures were absolutely amazing and feed the need to knit.

But the yarn was only half of the experience.  We then met Susan, the owner, who took us on a personal tour of the shop and the sample projects she had about the store.  I learned so many new tricks that are easy and fun to incorporate even for me as a beginner.  For example, using two different size needles in a project.  With a simple knit stitch, knit three rows on the smaller size needles, and on the fourth row trade for the bigger needles for three rows and back and forth.  I apologize if this explanation doesn't make sense.  I am still working on learning knitting terms.  Another project I am going to try is knitting a fun feathery yarn on size 15 needles so it is nice and lacy.  I know these are probably pretty simple techniques, but for a beginner it is hard to think outside of the written pattern, so it is nice to see that even at this level there is some freedom to have fun and experiment. 


For more on The Sassy Spinster, visit their website at:  http://www.thesassyspinster.com/

Unexpected lessons

Well, I have made it through my first skein of yarn, and I have learned in that time. 

My first surprise lesson came in the form of fellowship.  It seems that everywhere I turn these days I meet a fellow knitter.  One day I simply walked into work, and there in the waiting area was a fellow knitter working on a tam with her basket of supplies beside her.  Some of the best fellowship has been in learning from others.  I asked my mom to teach me the knit stitch after casting on.   It felt good to have another area of knowledge and skill that she can pass on to me.  I have a feeling she is still hoping that knitting will somehow turn into a minivan full of grandchildren though.

I was warned about this, but I didn't believe it until I was fully hooked.  Knitting is addictive.  At first, I wondered if I would ever complete one project.  In fact, I have not finished that first project, but I have already thought of four more that I want to do once this one is complete.  I need to get busy!

Domestication

I called my mom last week to fill her in on my new hobby.  Ok, I will admit it - I was also hoping for some free yarn and other supplies.  My mom's reaction to my blossoming desire to knit was to ask me if I was becoming domesticated.  Naturally, I was a wee bit offended by that statement and the insinuation that only women who are barefoot and pregnant or the old woman in the shoe can knit.  Because I can assure you right now that I am neither of those. 

So, I am here to break the stereotype - if there really is one - and I declare that knitting is for everyone - young, old, married, single, dare I say, even men. 

The Year of Getting Crafty

My mom has always been handy with a sewing machine, a crochet hook and cross-stich. I seem to take after her in many ways, so I have decided this is the year I become crafty.

My church has a prayer shawl ministry, which was another of my inspiration, and you can frequently see women knitting at various functions. I have always a appreciated a good knitted scarf, so that is where I am going to start my craft journey. I am hoping that as I knit, I will also be able to use the time to memorize some Bible verses. Since these are prayer shawls I will be knitting, it seems appropriate to pray the Scriptures over them as they are being created.

My journey began tonight with a trip to the local craft store to buy knitting needles and yarn. I think my choice of yarn and needles may not bode well for this endeavor - I went with what was pretty. I chose orange needles (size 7), because that is one of my favorite colors, and a soft pretty multi-colored thin yarn to begin my creations. Tonight I am going to check the internet for lessons since I am eager to start. Otherwise, there is a well-experienced knitter at church that has offered lessons.