C is for Crochet

I couldn’t possibly discuss crocheting without talking about my maternal grandmother, Josephine Eva Bogacz Tyran (photo right, 1994). Grandma was born in Gromiec, Poland and came to the U.S. during the first World War. Grandma was exactly sixty years older than me. Grandma taught me to crochet when I was about 9 or 10. Unfortunately I had the attention span of a gnat; I honestly don’t know where she came up with the patience to even attempt such a feat!

More than twenty-five (yes 25) years later I picked up the crochet hook at a friends house. I wanted to learn. But my hands remembered. I only needed to be reminded of the names of each stitch and to practice, practice, practice!

I have been crocheting for about four years now. In that time I have made mostly scarves and baby blankets (Left my niece Ellie models the blanket I made for her, 2006.) with a handful of dish rags thrown in for good measure. I long to expand my repertoire to include sweaters, hats, and mittens. I would love to be able to read a complex pattern with confidence. Gran died nearly eleven years ago. And as silly as it sounds, when I crochet, she is with me. I only wish I had more time to devote to the craft and more money to devote to the yarn!