Stitches Saskatchewan

Wow. And wow. It was a wonderful weekend and an amazing class.

St Peter's Abbey is an active monastery with a long (for Saskatchewan) proud history. It's main building is beautiful. A blend of old, and new and a little of everything in between as the colony and the abbacy grew and changed and diverged into the modern central Saskatchewan community it is part of. Here is just a sample of the lovely views. Plus, there are a dozen great walking trails though the now near hundred year old spruce that spot the grounds. The air is imbued with a sense of restfulness and peace.

The classroom was in the original building. It was a large classroom, a blend of the old and the new. The floors creek if you step too fast and walk harshly. I love that part of old floors and well used buildings. Many of the floors are that marvelous and hard to find old fashioned narrow maple flooring. The tops of several windows held some really nice examples of modern prairie stained glass. Can't you feel the aura of learning?

Where things have been replaced they have been replaced with care and attention to detail as well as an eye to cost. The new handrails are the usual milled oak, but only the very well to do could afford the original sort of solid oak rails and big square posts these days. I doubt that anyone but a person like me who has been in these hallowed halls before would know.

I cannot say enough about the class. I learned so much. I may yet become a lever knitter. My early samples look exactly like the first things I knit, but by the end of the class, I was doing reasonably well. I managed some ribbing that looked like ribbing and managed a couple yarn overs and a passable stockinette. But garter? In garter stitch I ruled. I had rhythm, and speed (but not much) and well, for just a moment, I felt like I could say I lever knit.

I had to go for a walk after the class, My head was full and my hands needed a rest. That's when I took the photos of the abbey grounds. Far at the end of the long drive in the photos, I stopped at the cemetery to visit an old friend, a priest from my childhood. My sister and I used to do odd jobs for him after a bad car accident. We did things he had trouble with, like hand recording the parish collection registers and did busy work, like folding bulletins and cleaning his car. Father Philip was an interesting man, who traveled to China in the days of Mao, long before westerners were allowed to travel there. He'd understand about the knitting thing.

At the end of a long day, there was still Stephanie's speech. It is a terrible picture, I know, but really she is there. She would be that tiny little dark spot under the lighter spot way, way back in the photo. The speech was interesting, scientific, funny and sweet and well, awwww. Anyone who has heard her talk knows exactly what I mean. ;)

At the end of a stimulating fun interesting challenging most amazing day, I walked out to the late evening prairie sky and my breath was taken away.

A fitting soaring tribute to the way my spirit felt at the end of the day.

We knit. Be a beacon to bring light into the non-knitting darkness.

Note to self: Never put camera in knitting bag. It collects fuzz.