Thursday, August 27, 2015

Sometimes it is best to just start over

I knit my husband a pair of socks for Father's Day 2009.  Ok, to be honest, I gave him the wool on Father's Day 2009 - He got the socks four months later in October.

I digress.

He loved those socks and wore them all the time. 

I darned the heels at least twice - but still - there they were in the darning pile again - and it just wasn't going to work.

Hmmmm. 
Maybe I could just cut out the heel and knit an afterthought heel?

Snip.  Snip.

The snips got bigger and the wool wouldn't unravel.

I thought about just throwing them out.  I curled them up ready for the garbage. 

But?

He really likes those socks.

And I hate throwing out things I have spent time and love on.

So I cut open the toe and started to unravel.  I unraveled all the way back to the start of the heel. 

I picked up the 72 stitches, and figured out where I was in the pattern. 

That took a couple of hours. 

This is what knitting has taught me.

Sometimes you can fix something that is broken. 

Sometimes you can throw it away.

But, sometimes?

Sometimes you have to start over.

Maybe not all the way over, but go back to before the mistake was made.

And start to knit it up again. 

I really did do this tonight with this pair of socks.



But?

But, this post isn't really about socks at all.

12 comments:

  1. I will try to remember your wisdom here and not toss things out with the frypan. xo

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    1. Lol. Yet you are brave enough to repaint over top of a Painting. I admire that resolve too.

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  2. Wow! I am impressed with your ability to salvage something that others would clasify irreparable. Your timing is amazing again, because only half an hour ago I was thinking to myself "I must get started on fixing my cardigan because spring is around the corner" It's the cardi which needs mending of the sleeves: http://lupeyloops.blogspot.com.au/2014/11/oh-no.html
    and of course your post is more than socks! That's why I love reading your blog.

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    1. Spring around your corner. Autumn around mine. Either way we are kindred spirits and both seasons need a cardie.

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  3. I'd have tossed the socks ages ago and probably whatever the reality they relate to. Or maybe not. I have a lot of perserverence and patience, sometimes. Had to find myself a cardie earlier. It's still supposed to be summer!

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    1. yup, the nights are definitely getting cooler here and fall is still a month away!!

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  4. Definitely more than sock! This is something that we all need to think about.

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    1. thank you for your comment. Nice to have a new reader.

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  5. nope.. to me it's another post proving what an exceptional human being you are, Mary-Anne, and how amazingly blessed the people you love are...
    xx

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    1. Shucks - I love you more every time you comment...

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  6. I really admire you for not giving up on something that you worked so hard on and put so much effort into. It is not always easy to fix mistakes, but you at least try :-)

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    1. I do try....not always successfully, but I do try.

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I look forward to reading the comments. It makes me feel like I am not just posting into the void.