Let There Be Peace, And Let It Begin With Me

When I was still young, I thought I understood what peace was. I was convinced my world was a pretty safe place. In my early twenties, I used to work in an area of downtown Toronto I didn't know was dangerous. I just walked around like I owned the whole neighborhood. No one ever hassled me on my short walk to the subway, or on the train either. I thought it was a peaceful commute. And it was.

But these days, there are a rising number of unsafe places. And far less peace than I remember. But maybe my understanding of peace has changed? Let's check...

peace

pēs/

noun

1. 1.

   freedom from disturbance; quiet and tranquility.

   • 
     

     
     
2. 2.

   freedom from or the cessation of war or violence.

     

Yup, that's pretty much what my definition is as well.

So why is there less of it? Is it, as a friend on the phone last night suggested, because fewer people care about the effect their words and actions have on others? Perhaps.

There is more violence today, more war, more judgement and more hatred. Using the definition above and physics, when there is more violence on the opposite scale, there must be less peace. Like a glass that's filled with water. More water -- less air space. 

My phone call with a friend last night was enlightening. At some point in the conversation, my friend said, "It comes down to one thing -- is that person's choice to do what they want with their body harming me in any way? Will it impact my life if a woman chooses to have her baby even if that baby is a product of rape? Will it impact my life if you choose to love someone of the same gender?" So why aren't more people asking themselves these kinds of questions before they judge others? Maybe it's too much work. Maybe it's easier for them to judge before trying to understand? I don't have the answers. But I'm mighty glad that I and my family are out here in the bush!

Some of you might remember that I can go on for hours about Ravelry, the knitting/crocheting/weaving/fiber website. Today, one of the hot discussions was the upcoming world-wide knit-in for peace. The event was born from one simple comment about the potential for peace if a few hundred knitters all decided to knit for peace. From the concept creator, Christina Campbell,

"Last year after conducting the first “peace-along” I jokingly said “if we could get knitters around the globe to focus on peace for 21 days we might create world peace.” At this point I say, no joking, what have we got to lose?

I’ve created a cowl pattern that has a bit of a soothing stitch pattern. It’s a 4-row repeat. Knit 1 repeat per day and at the end of 21 days (or close to it) you’ll have a peaceful cowl. Optional i-cord edging."

What’s a peace-along? There will be a daily tip on how to infuse more peace into your life. These tips will be available on my blog each day from December 1-21. They’ll be simple things, some from me and others from a few guests.  

So obviously, the idea spoke to me as a knitter. And who knows if we'll change the minds of angry people afraid of those who look or act, or pray differently. But in the 21 days that we'll be knitting that cowl, we will be thinking and talking about peace. And if the teachings of Buddha are correct, we'll cast peaceful ripples out into the world around us. And that's not a bad goal!

Each of us needs to do what we can to promote peace, no matter if that's knitting, writing poetry, peaceful protests, letter writing, feeding the homeless...we can all do a little something to reduce the mistrust and judgement and hatred in our world.

Maybe it won't start with a flower, or a stitch, or a knitted cowl...but it might.

Here's some music to help get you in a peaceful frame of mind.

"Let there be peace, and let it start with me."

                                                    ~

Change And Growth

There are many reasons why I've been away from the blog so long, and I don't see any of them as excuses, per say. None of our lives are simple and uncomplicated, and sometimes, priorities rear their heads and something has to give.
In my case, that was the blog.
But for the past few weeks, I've felt a nagging feeling drawing me back...so here I am.

I don't make resolutions so much as set goals, and the beginning of this year was no exception. I'm determined to sell two short stories this year. This sounds simple, and I only wish it were. But it seems that what I write cannot be easily classified. At first, I thought it was lesbian fiction. But what I write is more than that. My favoured pieces of my own creation seem to lean toward the 'speculative fiction' genre, but upon careful study of the markets, what I write is not dark enough for the paying spec fic markets. Apparently dark and demented sells.

Something else that I've been working on is building my platform. The non-writers among you are likely scratching your heads in puzzlement. Essentially, platform is a way of getting an author's name out into the world and building a following in a (hopefully) authentic way. This takes time. Even more so when the novel isn't finished yet! So I've been learning, researching and trying to build my platform one brick at a time.

At the same time, I've been knitting. Some of you may remember that I enjoy knitting socks. I enjoy the peaceful repetition of the cuff and leg, and the challenge of turning the heel. The whole process allows me some sort of creative space to mentally work out plot lines and character flaws. So no matter what my writing is doing, I'm still being creative. And even if I don't write a word for days, my characters are never far from my thoughts.

I've also been dealing with a medical issue. It's not life-threatening, but it will be life-changing, if only for a little while. I'll talk more about it another time, but I will tell you that pain is far more crippling than I thought. Honestly, pain is a bitch. The good part of this medical stuff though, is that it's made me aware of my own limitations, which has in turn, prompted growth and change in our youngest. In a good way.

I guess the take away of this post is that everything in life can either hinder us, or help us. It's a lesson I've had to learn over the past few weeks, and while I used to say I hated change, I can honestly say that the Universe doesn't care what I like or not.
Change is inevitable, and all we can do is react to it in a way that we hopefully come out the other side as better people. 

Warm Hands Equals A Warm Heart

As cold as we get sometimes here in the bush, it's good to remember that there are others who get colder than us. Over the last couple of years, I've done some charity knitting for women's shelters, preemies who have to start their lives in hospital, homeless folks here in the north, and for local folks struggling through chemo treatments.
Last year my charity knitting went to two groups; scarves for our local homeless and chemo caps for folks in Sault Ste. Marie.
This year, I'm going to add knitting for folks in the FAR north. Like Rankin Inlet and Resolute.

I stumbled across Warms Hands Network, a group that collects, packages, ships and distributes knitted and crocheted items that communities in the north have expressed a need for. Sweaters, socks, vests, blankets, hats, shawls, mittens and neck-warmers are just some of the items commonly made and donated. I think this is a great idea, so I'm in! Mom has decided she's going to donate as well, I think it will be interesting to see what we can come up with between the two of us.
WHN also has a Ravelry group, which is how I found them. The group has been going for a few years now and is an inspiration with conversations about donations, photos, where the items are shipped and sometimes even responses from the receiving community.

If you knit or crochet, take a look at the Warm Hands Network website, and/or their Ravelry group and consider jumping in with us. It's a great feeling to do something nice for our fellow human beings.

Anatomy Socks and Why I Need To Knit More Socks

Many of you know I like to knit, and some of my friends look at me knitting and scratch their heads. Apparently, I'm not 'what folks think of when they think of knitting'.
Or so I've been told.
Good! Just goes to prove you shouldn't judge by first impressions.

Anyway, since I know a few of my readers are also knitters, I thought I'd share a bit of my knitting passion.
I finally finished my Anatomy Socks. (See left, above) Plain tube socks that I knit while watching television or surfing the web, Mindless, easy knitting.

  I'm also pleased  to have finished the Dark Cable Socks
It was a new pattern for me, and really very easy. The socks even turned out to be the size ordered! Yay! Mens size 11.

I'm getting ready to cast on another pair of socks, this time in special sock yarn we picked up years ago, tucked away and promptly forgot about.
(More on that later)
I've been asked why I make so many socks, and my first answer is, why not? But once we get past the knee-jerk response, here's the best answer in the words of the Yarn Harlot herself;

"Hand knit socks are 100% better than store bought.They feel so fabulous on your feet that there's almost nobody who doesn't want to only wear hand-knit socks from the first time he or she slips them on."

Time to go smoosh some yarn. Next post, another very good reason to knit socks, the life and times of Buttercrunch lettuce and the secret life of basil.