Keeping The Brain Young

Knitting is not an easy activity for an autistic person. The need to control one's attention is required to  properly knit. Having poor executive function, my mind tends to drift even when I am watching TV, let alone when repetitively twirling yarn around knitting needles.

Since I am bad at it, I wanted to master it. I want to spend the rest of my life learning to do what I know I cannot do - whether it be knitting or EQ. Maybe, by age 90, I will be normal. Perhaps, it is a vain hope but well... what have I to lose? Stitch by stitch, situation by situation, person by person, I can accumulate know-how. Wherever I land in 20 years will already be better than now, no?

That was what I told The Son when I prepared him for PSLE. Just take it one step at a time. Wherever you land, will be already a better place.

Chong Pang Market was a challenge. It has become manageable. My ethnographic interest in hawker interactions have taught me so much. Knitting was really hard too. I sometimes unravelled a piece up to 5 times before I got right. I dropped stitches, miscounted, made front pieces that did not line up with back pieces. Once, the 2 sleeves were of different dimensions. It took me 1 year to finish the back piece of The Husband's grey sweater above -  ONLY the back piece. This yarn is pure cashmere wool. One cone of it costs $45 and one cone makes exactly the back piece. The front piece will need another cone of $45. The sleeves will be another $67.50. This sweater will cost $157.50 and 2 years of work. It had to be perfect because the wool was so dear. So, re-started the back piece about 3 times.

Once I have mastered this knit, I will buy yarn that is a mix of cashmere and silk, to make shawls and scarves for us girls in the family.

I do think I can better control my attentional focus, now.

Apparently, knitting engages several of the brain’s lobes — the frontal lobe (which guides rewards processing, attention and planning), the parietal lobe (which handles sensory information and spatial navigation), the occipital lobe (which processes visual information), the temporal lobe (which is involved in storing memories and interpreting language and meaning) and the cerebellum (which coordinates precision and timing of movement). Calling on all of these brain regions stimulates neural connections and keeps the connections working quickly and efficiently. The more we use these connections as we age, the more they will stay intact and preserve our brain’s function.

In other words, learning to do what I find difficult will keep my brain young. One must not only look after the external physical body. It is important to care for the internal physical body too.

So, bit by bit.... little by little, I shall become good at all the stuff I am bad at:
- Chinese
- knitting
- EQ