spring

well i have a few things that need to be posted but we'll start with this hat! i knitted one for our little darling last fall that she outgrew by early winter and then this hat came into being. the maroon is an alpaca super soft yarn and the bulk of the rest is a bulky Malbrigo some nice stuff. after making this i am a firm believer in the power of the quality of yarn. the higher the quality the more freedom you have with the pattern. (i want to be a high quality yarn then i can do whatever i want and it will turn out good) this one i sort of improvised from a bonnet pattern. she's getting a little too big for it now but we can tie it on for the remaining brisk spring days if their are anymore in coming.

other projects. that's overgrown tatsoi in the picture, amazing watching these things grow! it tastes good similar to spinach but has a shorter shelf life but the coolest part about having it in our yard is we can just grab some and prepare it the same day! there are so many aspects of japanese culture that I am thankful for, which i didn't even notice i was absorbing at the time, one of them being the deep respect for nature. As westerners, americans specifically, we seem to look at nature as something for our pleasure or entertainment rather than our life source, not saying americans don't revere nature, but the sentiments are different. thanks to an insight into the Japanese mindset regarding nature i now hold a deeper understanding of the idea "God is in everything and everywhere". this quote was one from a Bahai children's class teaching reverence and that particular class has always stuck with me maybe because as a teacher teaching reverence to 3 year old's is no easy task! but when we talk about God and Nature and go on the 'nature walk' (one of the activities) you can see the children recognizing what they instinctively know and connecting it with mental frameworks and language. Gardening makes me feel like an observant absorbent child, to be humbled and informed in such a natural way. All thanks be to God.