Hold on to what is good

Hold on to what is good
even if it is a handful of earth
hold on to what you believe in
even if it is a tree that stands by itself
hold on to what you must do
even if it is a long way from here
hold on to your life
even if it is easier to let go
hold on to my hand
even when I am have gone away from you

-Pueblo Indian Prayer

Dedicated to the memory of David, a good friend who passed away too soon.

Materials
Needles: 2.5mm DPN (set of 4)
Yarn: Any fine fingering weight yarn will do.  Two or three colours with a significant light/dark contrast.
Stitch holder or scrap yarn to hold thumb stitches
Darning Needle

Skills: knit, purl, increase, decrease, stranded colour work, chart reading, kitchener stitch

Download free .pdf pattern including full colour charts for hold on mittens.

May these words inspire you to appreciate all of the good things in life, and remind you that there is always someone out there who will be glad to extend a hand to help you when you need it.

If you like this pattern, check out my pattern for Olympic Red Mittens.  The games start on Feb. 12th….better start knitting!

Fox and Geese

In high school I started knitting fox and geese mittens from the book Fox and Geese and Fences by Robin Hansen, and these became my default mittens, the kind that I can knit even in a movie theatre. I’ve made pairs for family members and friends, some being mailed to far away places like Vancouver, Germany and South Korea.From the same book I learned how to make thrummed mittens, which were also quite a hit with family and friends. It wasn’t until later that I realized there was a controversy about how thrumming should be done.

I wore a pair of thrummed mittens on strings throughout university, and would often arrive to class with steam visibly rising out of my warm mittens.

visible thrums

Over the years I’ve used mittens as projects to experiment and refine techniques such as stranded colourwork, cables, and interesting stitch patterns. I have knit for the local breakfast program charity auction, as well as silent auctions supporting the Environment club at school.

Mittens knit for a charity auction supporting the school board breakfast program

My first handspun kool-aid dyed wool became mittens that smelled so wonderful for the first few months

My first handspun mittens-can't you just smell the kool-aid?

What better gift to a sheep farmer that gives you 3 bags full of fleece, but to make a pair of mittens for him out of his kind donation.

Mittens for a sheep farmer-gold colour from dying the wool with onion

When I heard the news of my friend’s untimely death, one of the first things I did was to pick up my needles and cast on. I knew I needed a project that would be intricate enough to keep my mind occupied. I wanted this project to be meaningful to me and to his family. Since he was a lover of words, I decided upon the poetry mittens that I had seen on Ravelry. I chose the following two poems.

poetry mittens

Do Not Stand At My Grave and Weep

Do not stand at my grave and weep;
I am not there. I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the morning’s hush
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry;
I am not there. I did not die.
-Mary Elizabeth Frye

poetry mittens

and

Hold On To What is Good

Hold on to what is good

Even if it is a handful of earth
Hold on to what you believe in
Even if it is a tree which stands by itself
Hold on to what you must do
Even if it is a long way from here
Hold on to your life

Even if it is easier to let go
Hold on to my hand
Even when I have gone away from you

-Pueblo Indian prayer

poetry mittens

It did take a few hours fiddling with a spreadsheet and words to get both pairs of mittens charted out. I luckily had sock wool (Kroy in the cream colour and Regia silk in blue) in my stash, and 10 days later I have two pairs of mittens. True to form, I did no swatch….but luckily both pairs worked out to human hand size. These mittens have given me comfort this past month, and I hope they will do the same for their new owners.

hold_on_chart (pdf)

This blank_template (pdf) will be helpful in designing your own poetry mittens.