The Things We Keep

In preparation for a probable impending move, I've been going through my stuff.  I ordinarily lean more in the pack rat direction, but there is something about having to pack stuff into boxes and move it that inspires me to do a major sweep and get rid of things I normally wouldn't think of parting with.  I like to think of this as one of the few benefits of moving.

Anyway, I came across something I had forgotten about, although it had been with me for some time:  a half-finished knitting project.  During grad school 1.0 (as in the degree I completed when I was in my twenties), I decided to learn how to knit.  With my mom's direction and help, I knit a scarf for Scott, whom I was dating at the time.  After finishing his scarf, I decided to make one myself.  I was living in Columbus, OH at the time, and I remember taking a bus out to a strip mall that had a Penzeys, an Indian restaurant, and a yarn store.  I stocked up on spices, had a delicious lunch, and selected some blue and purple yarn to make a scarf.  And then at some point, I stopped.  I'm thinking it was probably because I was going to Syria for a year, and didn't feel like taking a knitting project with me.

Anyway, this half-finished knitting project has been living inside a Gap bag since then.  It has either accompanied me or been relegated to storage for numerous moves.  And yet, in all this time, I've neither finished it nor committed to throwing it out.

At this point, if I wanted to finish it, I would need to relearn how to knit because it's been so long.  And truthfully, I don't know if or when that would happen.  I've spent years dreaming of all the things I would do if I ever had the time.  But this summer, I've actually had quite a lot of free time, courtesy of both a pandemic and a long, frustrating job search.  And I've come to the frightening realization that if I didn't need to work for the sake of having money, I could keep myself busy for the rest of my life with all the various projects I have in my mind.  I'm not sure at this point where in the queue relearning how to knit and finishing a scarf I started in my twenties falls.

I'm sure there are some lessons here for me, including the dangers of both unfinished projects and being too ambitious in my purchasing of craft materials.  But right now, I'm just trying to decide if a half-finished project makes the cut to move with me once again.