Knitting for Peace

Last week we started our winter quarter, even though it felt more like spring. Since I've been back from Minnesota, the temperatures have been in the 70s, even reaching 80 last weekend. I'm taking three classes this quarter: Women in Legislatures, US in Comparative Perspective, and Stats. My TA class is Intro to US Government, and I'm TAing for one of my favorite professors, MW. So far students have learned the constitutional foundations of our government and an overview of parliamentary systems. This is so that students can better understand the advantages and disadvantages of our form of government.

I've found some creative outlets to relieve the stresses and pressures of graduate school. Of course, I've been baking a lot (today I made Apple Spice Cupcakes for my class) and I've been knitting and crocheting. I have recently completed a purse, and I have started to crochet squares that will be assembled into another purse. I guess I'm on a handbag kick at the moment.

A few weeks ago, I purchased a book called Knitting for Peace: Make the World a Better Place One Stitch at a Time. It is this fabulous book about knitting for charities and different causes both in the United States and abroad. Some of the causes include knitting for soldiers, cancer patients, children, and animal shelters. This book could not have come to me at a better time. I was looking for some sort of way to contribute to a cause and make a difference, no matter how seemingly small. Grad school is time consuming, and I needed some sort of outlet to remind myself that I am more than an academic-in-training. This book has sparked an interest in 'craftivism,' a form of political and social activism that centers around crafts.

Anyway, I crocheted a comfort shawl for Sheila's Shawls, a program of the Silent Witness National Initiative. Silent Witness is based in Minneapolis and this organization works to raise awareness of and reduce domestic violence. Comfort shawls are distributed to women who have survived domestic violence as well as women who are the family and friends of those who have survived domestic violence.