Why Crochet?

As some of you may or may not know I began to crochet almost out of necessity.  In the fall of 2007 I became incredibly ill and spent some time in the hospital.  About a year prior to that my mother-in-law Nancy had taught me the basics of crocheting and I had made a few really misshapen dish cloths.

I picked my hook up again in 2007 to help with some charity projects a friend from church was putting together.  I almost immediately got pneumonia and pertussis, commonly known as whooping cough, spending a week in the hospital.  My stay in the hospital consisted of lots of coughing, lots of headaches, and lots of sleepless nights.  I couldn't read because of the headaches, and was by myself most of the time except for a few hours when Ryan was able to visit in the evenings.  So, being the dutiful husband he went to the craft store and bought me loads and loads of yarn.  During that week I crocheted about half a dozen hats and probably more afghan squares.  They weren't very attractive, and sometimes not completely symmetrical.  However, I pushed on.

It was estimated that it would take me about 6 months to recover fully from my illness and most of that was spent in bed not able to much else but crochet and watch TV.  By December I had crafted something for almost everyone in my family.  Hats and scarves were the gifts of Christmas 2007.

It quickly became apparent that it was going to take longer than 6 months to recovery from everything that ailed me.  Tests were run and doctors were visited and I got a diagnosis of Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.  These weren't necessarily new conditions, but in my weakened state after pneumonia, they were making me ill enough that my life could not go on business as usual.

So, I crocheted on.  And although I get healthier every year I still have not been able to return to school or work.  Birthdays, Christmas, and births of babies have been filled with wonderful hand made gifts since then.  I really find a lot of joy in it and I LOVE making something my own.

So why crochet?

• For me it pretty much just fell into my lap (teehee) and I ran with it.  But if you are thinking about learning to take up a craft, and thought about crocheting, I can tell you the effort and frustration at the beginning is worth the end product.  
• It's relatively inexpensive to begin, yarn starting for under three dollars and hooks not much more, although it can become extremely expensive when you like the feel of yarn as much as I do.
• You can do it anywhere.  Grab a ball a yarn and a hook and you can crochet on a bus, at the doctor's office, in the coffee shop.  My favorite place is in front of the TV.  I can't just sit and watch anymore, my hands are constantly going.
• You can make anything.  If you look at some of my recently posted pictures, you will see the variety of gifts I gave out this year.  No two a like. :) 
• Pure enjoyment.  Who doesn't like to have a bit of fun every now and then.  And for me, it's totally fun.  

If you are one of those people thinking about learning to crochet, please take my poll that you can find to the right of this post and let me know why it sounds appealing to you.  I'm hoping to teach some classes in 2011 and it would greatly help me know what kind of audience I should present to.
With love,
Woobie