Crossing the Finish Line

I had an epiphany today. I hate to finish projects. What, you say? That's impossible. No, not really. Here's the story....

I love starting new projects - the challenge of a new pattern, the feel of new yarn in my hands. What I love even more is the repetitiveness of the stitches and the movement of my hands. Knitting and crocheting are stress relievers for me. I don't pick complicated patterns for that very reason. It's not because I don't have the experience to tackle them. The fact is, I truly enjoy what other people would find mindless. It's my drug of choice (well, wine might fit here too!). When I've finally finished all of the stitches, my brain tells me I should be done. Unfortunately there are yarn ends to tuck in, seams to sew up, trim to create. And, sometimes that can take almost as long as it did to actually make the parts.

Look at this picture. It's a sweater for my grandson but it's not finished. I had a blast knitting all the parts. I even got one shoulder seam sewn and the neck band knitted. Now I have to sew the sleeves on, sew up the side seams and tuck in all of those yarn ends. Seriously, do you see how many yarn ends there are? Yuck. It'll get done but it's gonna be a struggle for me. But, I certainly will be proud when it's done and he's able to wear it!

Maybe someday I should hire someone to do the finishing for me. That would solve my problem, right? Well, sort of. I wouldn't have the satisfaction of truly finishing a project - a scarf, a sweater, a pair of socks. That's simply not acceptable to me. So, I guess I'll just have to cross the finish line myself!