Mother’s Day was a few days ago and some of the ads that I saw for craft stores and supplies were targeting mothers. Seeing those always makes me laugh because though my mother has always supported me in crocheting and other crafts that I have pursued, she never crocheted.
When I was eight and decided that I wanted to crochet, my mother asked my aunt (my uncle’s wife) what I needed, then took me to the store to let me choose the yarn I wanted. She has always supported me and still supports me in my pursuits. She critiques my work (color choices) and tells other people about my crocheting and other projects.
Later, after I began to show some talent for crochet, she was added to crochet magazine, book and yarn lists because she would buy gifts for me. Since buying my first materials, she bought my first full crochet hook set (which I still own), yarn basket and other accessories over the years. She will tell people that I can read patterns and charts and that I’m really good at crocheting, but she would rather play bridge. She has no desire to learn to crochet and said that when she was in college, a lady at the company she worked for (one of the owners) tried to teach her to knit on company time. She tried, but never took to it. Just because she couldn’t knit (or crochet) didn’t mean that she didn’t appreciate others’ work, it just wasn’t the work she chose or liked to do.
Not every mom is creative or even supportive, so I am glad that my mother has always supported me and encouraged me in my pursuits. Mother’s Day is only one day in which we celebrate mothers but we should also celebrate the mothers (and step-moms, grandmothers, aunts, etc.) who are also our greatest cheerleaders every day, not only the second Sunday in May when we celebrate them.
