Knit Doctor

First things first. When we arrived home from work this evening we were greeted by this scene in the rarely used living room. How sad that I'm airing my dirty laundry in public, but we thought this was pretty funny. TheEmptyNestChild was apparently burrowing in the couch. I just have two things to say. 1) Our sweet dog has been gone for two years, and 2) There will be no comments about my housekeeping. Thank You.

Over the years, I've thought a lot about all this crafting that we do in relation to gift giving. What if the recipient really hates that gift that you've toiled over? Should you spend a lot of time on something that you know won't be appreciated? I've finally decided that I make things because I love to make them and once they leave my hands, the recipients are free to do whatever they wish with my gift and I won't be offended, no matter what the outcome. So, this week my quarterly newsletter from Sheep's Clothing (in Valparaiso, IN) arrived and it contained advice from the Knit Doctor on just this subject, and I thought I'd share it with you:

Dear Knit Doctor,
I know you have heard tons of horror stories about unappreciated hand knitted gifts. Well, here is my contribution. Years ago I knitted an elaborate pillow for my son and his wife. It was a complex cable pattern. I went to visit them and noticed that the family dog had a very nice pillow -- hand knitted -- by me. I decided to say nothing, but put the pillow in my suitcase and took it home with me. I now enjoy it in my home and make no attempt to hide it when family comes to visit. Nothing has ever been said about this. Sometimes I wonder if they realize that this is in fact the self same pillow. I'm actually not mad at them for not appreciateing my gift. I'm really rather enjoying it myself.
No Pillow Talk -- Muncie, IN

Dear No Pillow Talk,
The fact of the matter is that a hand made gift fares no better chance statistically of being appreciated than a purchased one. It is my feeling that any hand knit gift should come with two contracts. First the knitter must make a contract with herself not to become emotionally involved if the gift is not well received. Second, any hand knitted gift item should include a return clause. You simply exercised your rights under the return clause.

Dear Knit Doctor,
Years ago we received an elaborate knitted pillow from my husband's mother. For reasons which we cannot explain, our dog just loved that pillow. Every time we retireved it from the dog, when we'd turn our backs the dog would have it again. We finally gave up trying to preserve the pillow from our dog. You can probably guess what happens next. Mother-in-law visits. Pillow disappears. Pillow reappears in mother-in-law's home. Since then I've seen it at her house many times, but no one ever mentions the... Pillow in the Room -- Griffith, Indiana

Dear Pillow in the Room,
In your family there is a Pillow In The Room that no one speaks of. In many families there is an Elephant In The Room that no one speaks of. This should put a new perspective on the basic good health of your extended family life. You are all wise enough people to enjoy each other without letting smal l matters, like pillows, get in the way.

So, there's my weak attempt at humor, 'cause really, all I can think of is what happened at Virginia Tech today. I really do think that blogs should be a place where we can escape, and most of the time that will be true here. I've had the news off all night. I have two boys away at school and for now I'll have to be an ostrich with her head in the sand. In the grand scheme of things, there's just nothing I could say that would be of any importance. I'm just so very sad for all the families that lost their children today.

XOXO,
Anna