The picture of granny sitting in a rocking chair and clacking away with her needles is the stereotype we associate with knitting. However, this age-old art has reemerged as a hobby, with enthusiasts from across the age spectrum, women who enjoy both the soothing act of knitting, and the beautiful items they can create.
When Sara Hershkovitz’s father was hospitalized last fall she spent many stressful days and then weeks sitting at his bedside. Unable to read for so many hours she found herself a prisoner of boredom.
“When my sister came to visit she started knitting a gartel” Mrs. Hershkovitz says. “She looked at me and said ‘Why don’t you do something?’”
Her sister directed her to a basement yarn store in Boro Park where the warm and welcoming owners patiently helped her get started. Mrs. Hershkovitz undertook to create a baby blanket and was so pleased with the results she made another and then another.… By the end of the winter she’d made four baby blankets: one for a grandchild and three for great-grandchildren. When Purim arrived she proudly presently them to her offspring as part of her annual mishloach manos offerings.
While her eineklach were thrilled to receive these handmade gifts Mrs. Hershkowitz felt she had gained as well. “The knitting got me through a very hard time” she avows. “It was even better than medicine! I’d been on medication for high blood pressure but ever since I began knitting I don’t need it anymore!”
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