A Tale of Two Sweaters

Please excuse the look of my blog while I work on creating a more pleasing design despite my significant limitations with blog technology.

Last week I received an order from an old friend whom I had lost touch with over the years. Natalie and I met in elementary school and remained friends until she transferred to a different high school. We spent a lot of time together as children. I have fond memories of us being old enough to walk to "The Center" for ice cream and spending New Years Eve listening to the top 40 countdown on 96.5 with our tape recorders poised for recording our most favorite song. Now she is a lawyer and married with a beautiful 15 month-old daughter. Reconnecting was one of those times that you are actually thankful for Facebook, not cursing its insane time-sucking ability. To say that I was excited to start working on this sweater is an understatement.

The thing about knitting a sweater is that it takes time. Time that sometimes

leaves me bored and time that sometimes finds me fascinated. While knitting this sweater I couldn't help but be fascinated. I am at this point right now where I am really enjoying seeing my childhood friends as grownups. I feel so proud to be part of their history and to watch as each of them paves out their future, especially as many are having children. Plain and simple; I just think that it is so cool. So as I knit up this cozy sweater with flower buttons, I couldn't help but think of the old Natalie as a kid and the now Natalie as an adult with a fancy job, a beautiful wife, and an adorable baby and hope she knows about the love and memories that went in to making Baby E her sweater.

The second sweater is for my favorite two year-old. The one you see and hear the most about in this blog. I had moved up here just before Sadie was born. While her mama had swollen ankles and her dad couldn't wait for her arrival. I had the pleasure of meeting her early on in life and become a very consistent part of her day-to-day life. I've seen her learn and change and discover and protest and laugh and love on a regular basis and feel so lucky to get to be there for all of it. When her mama dropped the not-so-subtle hint that maybe Sadie would like a vest for her second birthday, I got to thinkin'. Last year she got a bright yellow hoodie, but this year Sadie has a favorite color and it ain't yellow. So a purple vest it was. And I'm pretty sure that this isn't what her mama had in mind, but sometimes Sadie needs someone to girl it up for her. So, I bent the rules a little and added a little femininity to a typically masculine piece. Hopefully she too will know the love and stories that went in to making it.

Nourish

Last night there was nourishment for my mind, my heart, and my belly. It was an easy dinner shared with a newer friend. Time was given for touching base, sharing laughs, and eating a meal designed to comfort.

Fresh Corn in Basil Butter

Roasted Chicken with Lemon and Fresh Herbs

Mac and Cheese with Gorganzola

Peanut butter and Raspberry Cheesecakes

Connecting

I compiled many pro and con lists in the two years it took me to decide whether or not to leave New York City. The pro's list always had things like no more sitting in traffic on the FDR at 6:30 in the morning or no more being woken up by unbearably loud music at 3:30am on a school night. Things that had really begun to wear away at my sanity and things that I had no control over. But the con list, although considerably shorter, always made my heart tug. See, after seven years of living there, it was where my people were. By 'my people' I mean the folks who became a part of who I am. The people that I connected with. I loved the diversity of who these people were to me. I loved how frequently I would come away from time spent with them feeling surprised by how much they filled me up. But those relationships couldn't compete with how miserable the actual place of NYC was making me. And so I had to leave. It was the right thing for me to do. And although I miss them terribly, sometimes horribly, I don't ever regret the decision that I made.

But I do long for the connections. See, in NYC I didn't have to look far to make them. Somehow, I landed a job at a school where I met many of the people I am talking about. And those folks were the added bonus, I already had a great group of friends to begin with. Lucky, right? I mean who really gets to work with people that they call their friends? The people who share the same passions, fight the same day-to-day battles, and experience the same victories. Well, I did. And I think, subconsciously more than anything, I realized what a big loss that was going to be. (One day I will tell you all about how I always oversleep on last days of important events. Like high school)

Last night, after a weekend of feeling disconnected, I met a friend up in Maine for some dinner. I got to the restaurant first and ordered myself a Maine Lemonade from the Irish bartender. (One day I will tell you all about how amazing that cocktail was) S and I have been friends for almost ten years now after meeting in Boston. My visits up to her place in Wells were my respite from NYC for many, many years. And she is the kind of friend who asks how your doing and you say, "Fine, how are you?" and she responds with "Crummy, but are we being honest? 'Cause if not, I can be fine too." And that was the kind of night I needed. The kind of night were we can laugh and cry and problem solve over cocktails, chowder, and a brownie sundae (this is Maine after all.) And I left feeling connected again, and sometimes that is all I need to make things feel right again.