On the outside, I try to project an image of having it all together. But underneath that, I'm kind of a disaster. Hence... the name of the site: GlossyVeneer. Earlier this year, after my grandmother’s passing, my parents were helping my grandfather clean some things out of his house and they came across a bag full of yarn. My grandmother had been planning on knitting hats to send to a children’s hospital for kids who had lost their hair due to various illnesses. They also discovered a round knitting loom in the bag. My grandmother hadn’t even opened the loom. She was the most talented person I’ve ever met when it comes to sewing and such tasks with her hands so I’m not even sure if she needed the loom. But she hadn’t really been able to start on her latest project before getting sick and leaving this life.
So my parents packed up all the yarn and the knitting loom and took it home with them. And my dad read the instructions on the loom and started making hats. And making hats, and more hats and hats upon hats. Big adult-sized hats, little-tiny-baby-sized hats and hats of all sizes in between. He used all of the yarn in the bag and purchased more yarn. I’ve never been more surprised by the sight of my Dad, sitting around knitting hats while watching people die on CSI. But he has continued making hats and sending them out to various agencies and hospitals that distribute them. It’s very sweet.
This year there were two certain presents that managed to make their way to my home, one addressed to Kevin and one addressed to me. The tags indicated they were from “Santa”, but Santa’s handwriting seemed awfully similar to my Dad’s. We opened our boxes at the same time and were greeted with our own stocking caps, knitted by my dad.
It’s such a nice gift and the fact that he made them himself and thought to give us the hats without revealing the surprise to anyone makes them all the more touching. Thank you Dad.
