Those of us who knit, or do anything creative, really, know about the amazing powers that such activities have in our lives. They're calming and centering, they give us something to focus on besides our own problems and sometimes give us a way to help others and express ourselves that we wouldn't otherwise have. These things are important to us, but they're even more vital to people in prison. The Edmonton Journal recently wrote a great story on arts programs in prisons, from poetry classes to origami and knitting classes. Inmates say they're glad to have a chance to create something beautiful and express themselves in an environment where they wouldn't otherwise be able to.
In charity news, a Connecticut woman has been knitting hats for babies for 12 years, one craft group in Australia has whipped up 147 squares for the Wrap with Love campaign (which makes blankets for the homeless), and a New Zealand group has knit nearly 600 hats for babies in India.
Finally, sometimes the stories that come up when you search for knitting news online are a little funny. Case in point, this item on the trial of former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich, which describes his wife, Patti, sitting through the trial "knitting her 'prayer shawl'." Of course we wouldn't put prayer shawl in quotes, because we know that's a real thing, but it just goes to prove that dedicated knitters will knit anywhere.
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