A crafty notion: Busy hands help pass the time
For a few Town Meeting participants, crafting is a way to stay focused and grounded during the hourslong sessions.
As Town Meeting debate ran late into Tuesday night, Crista Collins kept her hands moving as she knit herself a sweater.
For Collins, the craft is a way to stay focused and grounded during the hourslong deliberative sessions of Acton’s citizen legislature.
“Otherwise, it would be a lot of sitting around doing nothing,” she said. “I can definitely knit and listen and participate at the same time.”
The rhythmic motion, she added, has a calming effect — especially during tense moments on the floor.
“Sometimes I get really frustrated,” Collins said. “This keeps my blood pressure down.”
She wasn’t alone. In the rows of voter seats, residents crocheted, embroidered, or worked on crossword puzzles.
Next to Collins, Jen Flint knitted her own project. Collins joked with her husband that he should bring his sourdough next time to knead during the meeting.
Collins said she would encourage other voters to bring something light to work on, particularly those hesitant to commit hours to civic participation.
“If you can be doing something else at the same time,” she said, “it helps.”
