So, the first project I'm doing is a lovely baby blanket, done in the style of a giant granny square. It's taking me some time to get it done, since I have adult responsibilities and stuff, and it's a larger project, and I'm slow at crocheting. All those things combined means this blanket has taken me like, two weeks already. But any kind of progress is good.
That said, I really like this design. It's simple, pretty, and highly accommodating. I can change colours pretty much any time I want to. I wish I could say this will be a gender neutral blanket, but I already know the place I give it to will end up giving it to a family with a baby boy. So I'll have to make a pink one. And then try to make ones that are gender neutral, too. I find gender assignment of colour to be incredibly frustrating.
Anyway, I wanted to talk a little about this project, and why I'm doing it. I've had at least one question of, "Why are you doing this?" so I thought I'd take some time to talk about it. Not in a like, justification kind of way, but I thought maybe if I talk about it, others might be able to find their own reasons for helping others.
The simplest answer is that I want to do something to help people who are having a harder time than me. Or just need a little extra boost to make things easier. I want to make people happy, and I hope that I can encourage people to pay it forward.
I grew up in a region of Upstate New York which probably counts as one of the poorest regions in the state. My parents, like many parents in our area, struggled with a lot of things, including ensuring that we had food to eat, but we were still amongst the luckier ones. There are so many people who don't know where their next meal is coming from, who can't afford the warm clothes for their baby in winter, or don't even have a roof over their heads besides an overpass, or that of a tent they were lucky enough to obtain. Here in Pittsburgh, I see people living under the bridges, and in the streets, sometimes without gloves, hats, or shoes, even in winter. And it's painful for me to see that, and to watch everyone, including myself, pass them by, often without a second thought.
I'm not saying every person who doesn't shell out to help the homeless or less fortunate are cruel or heartless people. More often than not, I cannot afford to give money to the guy standing on the street holding a sign asking for enough change to buy a sandwich, or to charities holding events in or outside of stores. But I do have something important; the materials and the skills to make something for those people. I might not be able to feed the homeless or provide formula to babies of families in need, but I can make mittens, hats, blankets, and booties.
Further, growing up in New York, and living in the time I do, I have seen and continue to see so many people who just hate each other, for little or no reason. So many succumb to road rage, even though they'll likely never see that car (or its driver) ever again. So many get offended when someone bumps into them. So many talk about a friend, a relative, or a co-worker behind their backs.
It's time we change this, and that's really what this year-long event is about; putting our biases aside and dissolving our personal protective shells and just doing something nice for someone, paying it forward, and hopefully inspiring others to continue the chain. We need to work to, as John and Hank Green of vlogbrothers say, decrease World Suck. It is time for people to know that they can trust others and count on others for help.
I know that many are probably unwilling to spend the money to buy a crochet hook or knitting needles, and some yarn, all in the name of making something for some stranger they'll probably never meet. I can tell you that a standard aluminum crochet hook, like the one I'm using to make this blanket, costs no more than two dollars. A standard skein of yarn costs between two and five dollars. A jumbo or one-pound ball of yarn generally costs about ten dollars. Maximum cost could be twelve dollars. And one standard skein could make, perhaps six pairs of baby booties, or four baby hats, or two pairs of adult fingerless gloves. Imagine what you could do with a one pound ball. All this for the cost of what you might pay for lunch.
So yes, it costs money, and time (especially if you need to take some time to learn the skills to create items). Yes, you will use those things in a way for which you might reap no physical benefit. But I argue that we should do these things, and that, if you learn that someone smiled, or cried with joy to know they won't freeze tonight, or was just quietly thankful for something you made, then you have gotten a return, and a very important one.
And that's why I'm working for this goal. January is almost over, and I'm off to a slow start, but when I start making smaller items, I know I can make one a day, and pick up pace. And with determination and care, I know I can put a smile on someone's face with a skill I developed as a hobby before the year is out.
