Power of Prayer Shawls article

Hey, folks.  I just wrote an article for Examiner.com on the power of prayer shawls...I can't share my normal, non-objective commentary too much in those articles, but here it is:

http://www.examiner.com/knitting-in-chicago/prayer-shawls-power-for-your-local-community

This topic holds a very dear place in my heart.  Someone once gave my father a prayer shawl as he was going through his cancer treatments, and I thought that was just about the nicest gesture ever.  When my friend Rossmid lost her baby, I wanted to do something for her but I did not know what to do.  Finally, I made her a prayer shawl out of this sweet, rose-colored yarn I thought she might like.  I was not there to give it to her in person, but I can tell you that after she received it, she saw me differently.  I felt like I was a more special friend to her somehow, and that in turn made me feel ridiculously special.

There is probably no such thing as a truly selfless act, as either someone gains something and someone loses something or both people tend to gain something, but I also don't see anything wrong with being selfless and reaping the selfish benefits of feeling good afterward.  In other words, if your motivation for doing something nice for someone is that you get something out of it, then so be it.  They do as well.

If any of you would like to learn how to knit, a prayer shawl is actually a great first project because you feel like you are knitting forever and you have the hang of the whole knitting thing when it is finished.  The shawl does not immediately have to have a recipient.  Please let me know if any of you are interested in knowing more abour prayer shawls, or learning how to make one.