Of Creative Accomplishments

There is something of a trend among the blogs I read at the present to post about their creative endeavors. On a whim, I posted a picture on FaceBook of my adorable new Miller niece wearing a dress I crocheted. I tend to view my creative accomplishments as hum-drum, nothing special or particularly news worthy, so the response to this picture on FB surprised me.

Crocheting is my stress reliever. In the spirit of Dr. Seuss... "I can do it in a car, I can do it in a plane, I can do it at the doctor's office, I can do it anywhere. I do so like pale yarn and hooks." Since I do a lot of preemie sized items, it fits nicely into my purse and I can pull out my current project whenever I have a few minutes to spare. Crocheting does not make me carsick like reading does, so it's a perfect distraction when we travel. A pair of booties can be whipped up in less than an hour, hats take only slightly longer; dresses & blankets provide longer entertainment. I hate sitting around with nothing to do, so this fills the need to keep the hands busy while the mind is otherwise occupied. What a temptation to sneak crocheting into church!! 

I do not remember how old I was when mom taught me to crochet, but I think it was somewhere in the region of 10-12yrs. I used to make full-sized afghans. During my yr. of VS, I had a burgundy/rose ripple afghan on my dorm bed -one of my earliest projects, and started on a matching navy/blue ripple for something to do during night shift. The man who is now my husband asked what the afghan is for. In my silly, sleep-deprived state of mind, and lacking a real reason, I announced that I was making his & hers afghans. He filed that piece of information away and at some point after we were engaged, he asked for 'his' afghan. We still have them.

Then I went through a period of life when the children were little that I didn't crochet much... too many messes when they would get a hold of the skeins of yarn. (Pulling yarn holds the same fascination as unrolling toilet paper.) Now that I've resumed crocheting as a hobby, smaller items are more mobile and my preferred projects. I scoured the web for patterns and learned how to make clothing items previously deemed too difficult. As word spread, donations of yarn started coming in. I have a shoe box full of patterns and a large tote full of yarn. Very little thrills my soul like a cold, dark winter evening at home with a ball of yarn and a hook.   

I always thought I would like to work in NICU. It's been said that when God closes a door, He opens a window. God closed the door to becoming an RN, but the NICU window opened when I started taking boxes of little items to NICU babies. I love wondering about the precious tiny lives that will wear my outfits or be wrapped in my blankets. The sad truth is that some of them will become burial gowns or keepsake blankets, but others will be joyous going-home outfits. I'm so glad my stress-reliever can benefit someone else in a stressful season of their life.  

On Weighty Matters

   With New Years resolutions weighing on folk's consciousness, and losing weight being the infamous top resolution, it seems the time of year to 'weigh in' on the topic.

I do not profess to speak for the entire non-dieter population; maybe my views are not representative of the majority of thin people. As referred to in a previous post, we sometimes do & say hurtful things simply because we don't know how it feels to someone in shoes different from our own. Thus I bring up the subject as food for thought. (Pun intended, no calories involved.)

We teach our children not to stare, point or make rude remarks about fat people. But how well do we do with the other end of the spectrum? Why is it socially acceptable for adults to make rude remarks directly to [naturally] thin people? 

Here are the facts- I am naturally thin. I am able to eat whatever I want and not worry about the numbers on the scales. Save your jealousy for worthy causes; I did not choose to be this way. I didn't wake up one morning and say "I think I'll amp up my metabolism so I can eat whatever I want." It's genetics, a God-given gift. Yes, a gift, but it does have it's down-sides. I don't consider it a compliment to be called skinny because it is usually said in a snide tone. And I've heard it over & over. I don't like being told I eat like a bird; that's rude and it puts on pressure to gorge myself for the sake of appearances. I eat until I feel full; why isn't that enough? It isn't exactly a novelty to treated like an outsider when the frequently-discussed subject of weight/dieting comes up, like it's an exclusive club that I can never be a member of. I get tired of trying to figure out whether to excuse myself from the conversation, try to empathise with the dieters, or just smile sweetly while gritting my teeth over yet another barb about my weight.  

In a previous stage of my life, I was contemplating starting my own exclusive club. I hadn't settled on a name for it, but membership was going to be limited to those of us women who do not put on large amounts of weight during pregnancy and pop right back to our pre-pregnancy size afterwards. It might come as a shock to you, if you are among the female population who considers/considered yourself as "big as a barn" during late pregnancy, but we "little women" are/were miserable, too. I hold firmly to the belief that we are/were every bit as miserable as larger women. Take into consideration that we have no extra padding to cushion us from the baby's jabs & punches. (Seriously, I had a bruised intestine with one of my babies.) Believe it or not, a small bulge out the front upsets the center of gravity more than a well-rounded weight gain, thus creating significant backache. When you have a "little basketball" sticking out the front [how I hated that term!], everyone feels entitled to pat it and make remarks about how cute it is while extending absolutely none of the sympathy heaped upon larger women. I was miserable and I've got the stretch marks to prove it! :)  

My point? I didn't choose to be thin any more than tall people chose to be tall. I do not view heavier people as sloppy fat or disgusting. In fact, it's more likely I think you should relax and enjoy life- don't be preoccupied with the numbers. Sometimes people moaning about their weight really don't have as many extra pounds to shed as they seem to think. It's my opinion that moms with a little extra padding are comfortable moms. I ask you- what child wants to snuggle up to a bony mom? (If you have young children or grandchildren, remember that the next time you step on the scales!) I would be happy to put on a few pounds if I could, but since I can't, and neither can I take the extras I've been offered, I suggest we all be happy with who God made us to be. I really don't think there will be an extra gem in my crown for being under-weight, but we can lay up treasures by being kind and sensitive to each other.