When I was a little girl, I would watch my grandma crocheting. It was mesmerizing watching her move that hook, looping the yarn over the hook, and creating things. Man! Her fingers moved so fast, it seemed as if she was just wiggling the hook and making it magically turn into a blanket. I can remember that there was a crocheted afghan draped ovethe back of the couch with colorful rows of yarn woven together creating a zig-zag pattern. I would run my hand over the afghan, I loved the softness and the texture of the yarn. I can remember helping her roll the yarn into balls, I loved looking at all of the colorful balls of yarn. One day, I asked her, Grandma, please teach me to crochet." I was probably 9 or 10 years old. Grandma tried to slow down her crocheting to show me what she was doing, it was a double crochet stitch. "Loop the yarn and draw though." That's what I remember her saying. It seemed simple enough, so she pulled out another hook and a small ball of yarn, and I gave it a go. After a few minutes of silence, I asked her how I was doing. She watched me crochet for a few seconds, and then said, "I am not sure if you are doing it right, you're holding the hook wrong!"
I can vividly remember that day, and her telling me I was holding the hook wrong, but I cannot remember how I was holding the hook. I have often wondered if I am still holding the hook wrong! I have watched many crocheting videos, and some hold their hook the same as I do, and some hold it differently. Either way, I have mastered crocheting while holding the hook the way that it works for me. I don't think I crochet very fast, but it does get the job done.
As my grandparents got older and went to live in a nursing home, our family began to clean out their house. My mom took me to the house and told me I could take what I wanted. I decided that I wanted her crochet bag. Inside the bag, was a blue and white afghan that grandma had been working on. I didn't do anything with that bag for more than 5 years. I had packed that bag into a box and moved twice in that time. Then one day, my middle child told me she was having a baby and I remembered the blue and white afghan that my grandma had started but never finished. I pulled it out and began crocheting, deciding that it was time to finish what grandma had started. I cried many times as I crocheted, as memories would flood my mind. I had no idea if my daughter was having a boy or a girl, but I crocheted anyway. While crocheting I kept thinking how sweet it would be to wrap the little baby into a blanket that his grandma (me) and his Great-Great Grandma (my grandma) made. As it turned out, my first grandbaby was a boy! The blue and white was perfect.
My youngest daughter asked me to teach her to crochet some years back. As I tried to teach her to crochet, I realized how hard it is to show someone how to crochet. Sweet memories of my grandma flooded my mind once again. I am lucky enough to have YouTube to show my daughter how to crochet, which is way easier than trying to explain how to wrap yarn and draw through the loops. If you are wanting to learn how to crochet, Naztazia.com is an excellent source full of how-to videos, and you can find the videos on YouTube as well.
I am currently working on an afghan for my next grandbaby due to arrive in January 2023. I am crocheting using the zig-zag pattern, this is my first time attempting this pattern, and I really like how it is coming along. I am truly thankful that my grandma took the time to teach me to crochet. I have included a picture of the afghan I am currently working on; I can't wait to wrap it around my next grandbaby.
