PlazaJen: Passion Knit

When I was home over the weekend, I did a lot of knitting. Before we left, I made my dad a Kufi-style hat out of Debbie Bliss Aran cotton, so when he goes through chemo, he'll have something soft to wear, if he chooses. A damn good looking hat, if I say so myself. Then, I finished his socks, and I think he was touched by how custom-fit they were, and was struck by how warm they are. Handknit socks truly are a magnificent piece of knitting. Not stopping there, I pulled out the skein of Artyarns merino (hand-dyed in a slatey-blue colorway) and made a roll-brim hat for him, too. Now he has choices, depending on how warm he wants to be. And he looks damn good in hats! I knit the second hat at lightning speed, and astonished most everyone. (Thanks to JWo for rubbing my hands when I was done....)

It's interesting, I didn't take pictures of any of the finished objects - maybe because what they represented to me was both a little bit painful, and knowing that the emotional energy poured into those things could never be fully captured in a photo. I have wonderful pictures in my mind, of him wearing each of the hats, and the socks, too. They are my small hand-crafted hugs to him, since I can't be there every day. I gave Brenda (his wife) a shawl I'd knit out of tartelette & told her to wrap it around herself whenever she wanted to feel a hug as well. Fancy hug, with fringe.

Hugs come in all shapes, styles & forms.