In the fourth century AD, Christian monasteries sprang up in the deserts near Alexandria in Egypt. In these harsh conditions monks struggled to live ascetic lives of prayer and deprivation in the belief that this would secure them eternal life. One can easily imagine how these monks might lose heart and be distracted from godly prayer – particularly in the sleepy postprandial times of the midday lull. One monk, Evagrius Ponticus, wrote about the tiresome demon behind these temptations of listlessness and lassitude, calling it the Noonday Demon.
Over the last few months, I too have struggled with this darned Noonday Demon – though in my case, it has broken all the rules, and will not stick to the stipulated noonday hours of ten to two …
I did complete my doodle stitchery as I wrote in my blog post last month. But otherwise I seem to be just flitting from project to project, unable to find the energy or drive to complete anything in particular …
At the beginning of the summer I started another Judi Dench tapestry, this time replacing the greens with blue tones …
It came on a couple of train trips with me, and then I lost interest and it got put to the side …
So I thought I would try some spinning … I got out my best most glorious colours …
And yes, I did find the spinning very comforting and pleasurable, and got quite a bit done. But I lost interest when I saw what how the dark tones submerge the brighter colours in the finished spun yarn …
A pile of my most beautiful fabrics came out one weekend when Stephen was away …
I did a little machining …
Played with some other fabrics …
But it just didn’t grab me. So I put it all away – and the only being happy with the whole event was the cat …
I know! I declared to myself. I’ll go back to my first proper knitting love! I’ll do some Kaffe Fassett knitting! And I was indeed very happy with this blue/green/purple strip of knitting – but then unruly thoughts niggled at me … Was this planned knit really going to be useful … Kaffe Fassett knits are so cosy with all that stranded knitting at the back. Do I really want to wear that sort of cardi any more …
It got put to the side, ending up next to the wastepaper basket – oh dear, what indignity!
I got books of inspiration out …
I was sent fabulous fabric scraps by generous friends … but nothing seemed to spark my creative wires …
I did complete one other piece – oh yeay! I was asked to stitch a Berwick Worm for the Tweed 1000 celebrations …
This is a community stitchery being worked to commemorate the Battle of Carham of 1018. That almost unknown battle resulted in the Scottish/English border being set as it is now, adjoining the River Tweed, rather than near Edinburgh. The pieces being worked are all linked with the history of the area.
There are many stories of Worms in the area – probably the best known is the Lambton Worm of County Durham. The Durham locals have a song about their worm which you can hear here beautifully sung by a famous County Durham boy, Bryan Ferry. It’s a great worm story!
The worm got fat an’ grewed an’ grewed,
An’ grewed an aaful size;
He’d greet big teeth, a greet big gob,
An greet big goggly eyes …
I was so very chuffed to be allocated the Berwick Worm. I got out my fabrics, and started stitching …
Sadly, I have to say my heart wasn’t really in it. Although I think he’s quite a pleasing worm and I’m not in any way ashamed of my contribution, I didn’t find it quite as unputdownable as the best projects are …
The one other long-term stitching project that I have toyed with this summer is an old friend which I started last year when I first learned about Alabama Chanin’s embroidered clothes. I wanted to make a garment for myself but decided to start with a sample piece – and here it is at the beginning of the summer …
I have picked it up recently and enjoyed adding quite a lot more different stitches to the background …
I’m not alone to struggle with this problem. Others call it different names – for Ann Wood, for example, it’s Natsubate. Some know it as Accidie. Myself, I like the personalization of that imp, the darned Noonday Demon.
Perhaps it’s just this very long hot dry summer that we’re experiencing in the UK right now. And I only need for the heavens to open to right my energies? With the political temperature soaring all over the world, it seems more than a trifle shaming to be so concerned with the pace of my creativity.
It’s just the small things though, isn’t it, that are really important?
Again I resume the long
lesson: how small a thing
can be pleasing, how little
in this hard world it takes
to satisfy the mind
and bring it to rest.
Wendell Berry: Sabbaths 1999, VII
Ever in hope I have started a new knitting project! There is nothing like a knitting shawl for comforting ease of project and I have several very long car journeys later this summer when I will need some knitting. I had to undo a shawl that I didn’t think was quite right for me to reclaim this beautiful Old Maiden Aunt yarn. ( It’s a beautiful 4ply baby alpaca, silk and cashmere combo called ghillie ghu.) I’m hoping to knit it up as a Karie Westermann Bibliotheca shawl.
Wish me luck – I so wish to find a project that will be absorb me!
something from seaview 