about the very first person for whom I knit. The first person I knit for. I remember the thing that I knit for him. It rolled like a son of a gun but he didn't care. At that time, I didn't know that stockinette, you know, knit on one side and purl on the other, without some sort of edging, will roll. Every time. As sure as the sun will rise the next day or that one day you'll die, any stockinette will roll. It just will. But at 18 years of age, and after a cumulative 10 hours of knitting under my belt, I didn't know. Al Gore hadn't invented the internet yet. In those days, you'd have to call up your grandmother or something.
But I knit for him a scarf that rolled. It was also about 20 feet long. I remember one day he was going to take me on a hot air balloon trip for my birthday and I presented it to him at about 5:00 a.m. that morning. I took a picture of him with it wrapped all around his neck, grinning. He loved it. Of course he appreciated it. He was an artist.
He came here from the midwest to live with his dad who promised that once he graduated from high school that he and his new wife would pay for his education. My boyfriend, he was super smart and got into all the colleges he chose. Thing is, he told his dad that he wanted to study art. His dad wouldn't have it and promptly kicked him out of the house.
So my boyfriend, still wanting to pursue art, took on as many jobs as he could so he could go to the local community college and study. One of his jobs was climbing up in the rafters of old buildings in Los Angeles to do security work; you know, spying on would-be shoplifters. He scraped and saved and did all he could do to stay in school. At one point, he was so poor that he had to sell his car and ride a motorcycle instead, to work and school. His mom got sick back home and he rode that thing all the way to Kansas and back so he could see her.
We parted ways when I was 20. Last I heard, he died from lung cancer at about 23 years of age. He got it from the astbestos in the rafters in those old buildings.
And he loved my wonky scarf.
He was someone who I would describe as scarf-worthy.
Your story reminded me of an old poetry and quotation book that a friend gave to ME many, many years ago -- this was on one of the pages:
"You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments when you have really lived, are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love." -Henry Drummond
Friends who are scarf-worthy are a gift, that is for sure. Thanks for sharing.
Posted by: syd | February 04, 2012 at 01:40 PM
What a tragic, and yet, and yet beautiful, story.
Posted by: Renna | February 04, 2012 at 02:03 PM
What an incredibly touching story, J.
Posted by: DictionaryDiva | February 04, 2012 at 02:15 PM
He sounds totally scarf-worthy.
Posted by: Barbara | February 04, 2012 at 02:39 PM
Awesome story!
Posted by: jomamma | February 04, 2012 at 03:18 PM
totally scarf-worthy
Posted by: flossie | February 04, 2012 at 03:51 PM
What a memory, so bittersweet.
Posted by: Lizzy | February 04, 2012 at 03:57 PM
Your story brought tears to my eyes. Thanks for sharing.
Posted by: Rochelle | February 04, 2012 at 04:52 PM
Oh. What a great but tragic story, Wendy. My goodness. Scarf-worthy indeed.
Posted by: michelle | February 04, 2012 at 06:04 PM
Beautiful and sad. Thank you for sharing.
Posted by: Ursula | February 04, 2012 at 06:09 PM
thank you for sharing that story. I had someone like that (who I lost last year...almost to the month). It's nice to think of him and remember that I did something that left a mark on him, and that he left one on me. Thanks for helping me remember that :)
Posted by: Cambria Washington | February 04, 2012 at 08:17 PM
Beautiful.
Posted by: Cheri | February 04, 2012 at 08:41 PM
Ver beautiful and sad. Thank you for sharing x
Posted by: Shirley | February 05, 2012 at 03:47 AM
Word.
Posted by: Princess Di | February 05, 2012 at 06:33 AM
Yes, he was very knit worthy.
Posted by: Victoria | February 05, 2012 at 10:38 AM
I loved reading this story. Goosebumps. Thanks for sharing it.
Posted by: Christie | February 05, 2012 at 11:04 AM
Wow.
Posted by: Nik | February 06, 2012 at 08:11 AM
I wasn't expecting to rad something like this this morning but thank you. With few words, you have painted a portrait of a young man who was most definitely scarf-worthy.
Posted by: tara | February 06, 2012 at 08:43 AM
Wow. Speechless.
Posted by: Helen | February 06, 2012 at 11:09 AM
Thanks for sharing such a lovely story about your boyfriend. What a wonderful person. Sometimes people are taken before their time. Aren't you glad you made him that scarf?
Posted by: Marylu | February 06, 2012 at 04:52 PM
Thank you!
Posted by: stephanie gordon | February 06, 2012 at 06:27 PM
My first visit and this is the post I read! Wonderful, heart-wrenching. And yes, definitely scarf-worthy.
Posted by: Kelly | February 07, 2012 at 08:25 AM
Wow... just wow...
Posted by: Cleo | February 07, 2012 at 12:47 PM
♥
Posted by: Vilhelmine | February 08, 2012 at 07:06 AM
So tragic...definitely scarf-worthy. Thank you for sharing
Posted by: Tressa | February 08, 2012 at 11:39 AM