Stitches in Time

In one of my very first blogs, I talked about how I try to learn a new skill every year (http://melissa-randomthoughtsfrommelissa.blogspot.com/2011/11/just-keeplearning.html).  In that blog, I briefly touched on learning how to crochet from my Grandma Creamer.  Today I would like to tell you more about that experience and the wonderful lady she is.

I believe I have been very blessed in my life.  I have had the fortune to have not one but two great ladies for my grandmothers.  Ruth (Winters) Mizell was my maternal grandmother and Ruth (Summers) Creamer is my paternal grandmother.  I always found it humorous that my Grandma “Ruths” had opposite season maiden names.

Grandma Creamer is your typical grandmother.  She is the poster child of what a grandmother is.  She is a caretaker and a great cook.  Her chicken and noodles are legendary.  If you left Grandma Creamer’s house hungry, it was your own fault.  When I think back on my childhood I can see Grandma Creamer in her kitchen cooking, at the dining room table reading a magazine, or possibly in the living room crocheting.

A few years back during a visit, I asked her if she could teach me.  She was more than happy to do so.  She set me down at the dining room table and handed me a “K” size hook and some yarn.  She also had a hook and said, “Me do, you do.”  Easy enough, right?  My first square, and I use the term loosely, of single crochet was more trapezoidal than square.  Grandma said I could undo it and start again.  I wanted to keep my first piece intact, as imperfect as it was.  If I didn’t, how would I be able to compare later pieces and known that I’d gotten better?

There are some things you can teach yourself.  There are others that are better when someone shows you.  I am so glad I had Grandma to teach me.  She is a very patient teacher and learning to crochet can be very confusing.  When I messed something up she could look at it and almost instantly know what I did wrong.

With practice, I did get better (squares actually turned out relatively square).  Once you learn to chain and single crochet, you can learn many different stiches.  I bought books, borrowed books from the library, and continued to learn.  I will always treasure those first lessons with Grandma Creamer.  I also treasure that first hook, which she gave me to keep.  Not everyone can say that they know how to crochet.  I can because my Grandma Creamer taught me.

Until Tomorrow - Melissa