tribes

If you've read much of this blog, you may know I'm a knitter.  Sometimes people ask me what I knit.  Not sure there's a theme really.  If I see someone who needs a sweater, I'll make it.

If I find a pattern that inspires me,  I'll knit it.

And sometimes I just like to make stuff up.

But I do knit - a LOT.

This past weekend I was lucky enough to attend the Squam Art Workshop in Sandwich, New Hampshire. Now that I think about it, I don't think I had a single sandwich.  But I did have one of the most exciting and inspiring 5 days of a lifetime.

It all began with a ride in the fabulous and talented Cal Patch's  dark green jeep.  We had never met which is so hard to believe now.  I guess I sort of hitchhiked on line and she picked me up.  Phew!

We left pretty early but we had so much to talk about that we missed several turns and didn't arrive until dinnertime.

I still can't believe that this was the view outside my window.

While there I took several classes where:

• I learned some excellent knitting tricks from the young knitting wizard,  Jared Flood.
• I learned the meaning of "upcycle"- the act of making something beautiful and memorable from treasured scraps languishing in our cupboards for far too long, from Charlotte Lyons. 
• Most importantly, I found the courage to try something new (which was really hard!).

Maya was the guardian angel sitting on my shoulder when I took the plunge.  Everyone in her orbit saw the halo.  I wish I could have put her in the maya*made bag I bought at the craft fair and taken her home with me.

I went to Squam completely alone.  I knew not a soul.  And yet once I was there, I felt I knew them all - from the women in my cottage to the teachers of my classes to the people I met at the dining hall or walking in the woods. Best of all was being surrounded by this tribe.   We all belong to several tribes.  The first, and most obvious is our family.  Beyond that we have geographic tribes defined by our neighborhoods, professional tribes at work,  political and religious tribes, and more. There is an automatic kinship with the other members - an understanding that creates a space to share ideas, knowledge, and stories.

Many of my tribes cross over.  But my craft tribe is somewhat unto itself.  I very rarely see them. Connecting to them made me see things about myself that I hadn't realized.  Spending time surrounded by them was profound - there were so many inspiring people making beautiful and brilliant work.  It was so hard to leave.  Is that how Zuzu feels when we take her to the dog park?

I was at breakfast one morning realizing I was very near to knitting the buttonhole of a sweater I was working on.  I never liked my own buttonholes, they're just never quite right.  I looked around the dining room and thought, of all of the places I have ever been this is the room where someone will know how to make a better buttonhole.  In fact, sitting right by the entrance 2 women were wearing beautiful cardigans.  Sweet Natalie, who collected our meal tickets. was wearing her brilliant blue tea leaves cardigan with 6 perfect buttonholes.

Next to Natalie, Stephanie Pearl-McPhee was wearing a gorgeous green cardigan, which upon inspection,  I realized had no buttonholes.

It had taken a bit of daring for me to get up and wander over to strangers to ask for knitting advice, especially from Stephanie. There were quite a few knitting superstars at Squam - Stephanie (aka the Yarn Harlot) being one. One night she told us stories that had me laughing so hard I couldn't see my knitting through my laugh tears. When I asked them how they make buttonholes they replied in chorus "Yarn over, knit 2 together!".  So obvious!  I said that I usually make the one row buttonhole to which Stephanie responded, "Yes, that's a good one too, but you need to wrap the yarn when you make it, let me show you."  She pulled out the socks she was working on from her bag and demonstrated, on the sock (!), how to make the perfect one row buttonhole.  I stood there smiling and nodding while watching her knit, but frankly I was so mesmerized by watching her knit that I couldn't hear a word of what she was saying.  I have never seen anything like it. It was more like watching a spider weave a web than any knitting that I have ever seen - fast, furious, and impossibly perfect.  I still shudder with disbelief to recall it. I thanked her and when I turned around I thought, "yarn over, knit 2 together".

I knit at every event, many meals, and during all my free time at Squam - and it wasn't rude!  In fact, everyone was doing it.  My concentration wasn't the best, consequently I made a lot of mistakes, but I did manage to finish a striped baby sweater just before I had to leave and head back home.

Zuzu seemed relieved to have me home.  Her human tribe was once again complete.  We have never been separated for 5 days.  She followed me everywhere until finally I sat down.  She jumped up on my lap, snuggled in and went straight into a snorry slumber.