A Feat for the Feet

Marina finished knitting her first pair of socks. This is a major accomplishment, at least to me because I'm yarn-challenged. I should mention that these are the second and third socks she made. Her first sock was very nice, but rather wide. She was very disappointed in it and all ready to unravel it. When she told me, I thought she should leave it. She had already spent so much time on it, I felt like there must be some way to salvage it. In hindsight, I should have let her dismantle it. I have spent so much of my life holding onto things that aren't working. I have held onto half finished projects for years because of this belief that if I've already invested a lot of time/energy/money in it, I have to make it work.

Along comes Marina with her knitting teaching me another lesson about letting go. The nice thing about knitting is that if something doesn't work you can undo it and reuse the fiber. I think it is wonderful that she is learning this. When I first started homeschooling her, she was always fearful of making mistakes. Her work had to be perfect. I understand these feelings because I also strive to do the best I can at whatever I do. She was always upset when I introduced new math concepts because she wanted to understand immediately. She developed test anxiety from Tae Kwon Do, of all places. Every time she had a belt test she would be a bundle of nerves.
Then her friends taught her to knit. It's relaxing. It teaches her to accept her mistakes, learn from them and move on. What an important skill to master at such a young age!