Knitting Lesson

Today I skipped over to my neighbor's house for a knitting lesson. Helen does not follow patterns. She just knows what to do, which made it a bit tough for Pom Pom. She found my wooden needles big and cumbersome and my knit two, purl two heel flap, confusing. Her answer? Start a mini-heel flap in order to show me how to "turn" the heel. My pattern did not jive with this mode. I get the drift. There are MANY ways to turn a heel. Helen used teeny tiny needles and skinny yarn and whipped back and forth, producing a few inches of our pretend heel flap. I soon got distracted by her dog (so cute!) and the pile of crocheted slipper/socks in the basket. She gave me a pair and also showed me how to make them, so I'll take a picture of them tonight and post tomorrow. Anyway, all said, I will fiddle with my sock and try again to make sense of the pattern and do it Helen's way next time. I will experiment with my own crochet hook and yarn to see if I can surprise Helen with my astute "figure it out" skills and hence produce a slipper/sock or two of my own. The best part of the lesson was listening to Helen speak about living in Eastern Europe around the onset of World War II. She spoke of the necessity of making everything! They made their own cloth, their own sweaters and socks, and they grew as much as they could on the small plot of earth they possessed. She has worked hard all her life and now that she is eighty plus years old, she's bored because she can't physically go, go, go like she used to. Well, I appreciate her lessons. She also told me how to make sauerkraut in a barrel and how to roast a leg of lamb. Pom Pom has a lot to learn! The wind is spanking us today! The forewarned snow storm has not arrived, but it is still a good day to stay inside and knit. May the Lord bless your heart today and show you a way to use your vast creative abilities!