Flannery

I have a confession to make.

I was a slacker in high school when it came to literature.

Yikes!

I sure made up for it in college!

One of my favorite American authors is Flannery O'Connor. I'm sure I heard her name in high school, but I managed to graduate without reading a word of her incredible work.

I read her short stories in college and was entranced. She was one of our country's Southern Gothic writers. Moody, a little creepy, a wee bit sinister, emphasizing the grotesque and modernizing the more traditional gothic genre.

I knew she had the dread disease "lupus," but (ha) knew nothing about what that meant. I was diagnosed myself with lupus not too long after reading her, which makes her work all the more meaningful to me.

Those who are familiar with Ms. O'Connor know that she lived in the deep South, in Georgia, on a farm (Andalusia) filled with peacocks and other fowl. She loved peacocks and worked peacock imagery into much of her writing.

My new scarf is my own little ode to Flannery. I used a chunky alpaca yarn (SO soft) and knit this up in peacock feather-like lace pattern. I'm mesmerized lately with lace knits using chunky or even bulky yarns. I just love the contrast of delicate lace pattern and bold yarn. And it's so much more fun to knit than plain old garter stitch, isn't it?

I feel the urge to pull out my dog eared and not read in far too long collected works of Flanner O'Connor. If you haven't read her before, you might try now!