Mantra Knitting

With a looming trip, I spent the last week intensely focused on trying to finish the Radish Tank (crop top version) in time to wear during my travels. As an early bird, staying up late is a rarity, but my enthusiasm included late nights and multi-hour knitting sessions. I watched old movies, like all of The Hunger Games, and settled into the project, even with the confusing shaping instructions.

I finished the back with only 2 days left before the trip. With other preparations, the time to complete the front and do all of the finishing steps (blocking, seaming, armhole/neckline finishing, etc.) was quickly dwindling.

I kept furiously working until the last minute, when my husband warned me of our early wake-up time for the airport and urged me to call it quits for the night. With only five or six inches remaining (and the stitch count on a steady decrease), I reluctantly gave up.

I packed the project, but my AirBnB isn’t conducive to the blocking that this project really needs to reach the finish line. I want to fully block the front and back prior to seaming them together, so once the knitting on the front is complete, I’ve essentially reached the end of my away-from-home capabilities.

I’m disappointed, but the goal of my knitting practice isn’t usually about the finished result as much as it is about the positive feeling that the act of knitting, both repetitive and soothing, gives to me. So, I’ll put the project on pause for now and remind myself that patience is indeed a virtue.