Whenever I think of endings, I am inclined to think of transitions like finishing a course, retirement from a job, moving from a mission or indeed the death of a loved one. All of us could write our own book about any, or all, of these major milestones.  Haven’t we experienced so many?  Today I am writing about two endings that couldn’t be classified as either transitions or milestones in the more general sense, but which nonetheless pose their own special & unique challenges. I have only recently thought about them – let me tell you about these.

Two friends are artists who produce expressive, abstract, paintings that are truly magnificent. Recently I was talking to Jill and admiring a painting which she donated for a charity and, in the course of the conversation, she told me how difficult it was to finish the painting.  Believing it was because she had many other tasks on hand – and she is a busy woman – she went on to say how she laboured over finishing it,  adding that  each time she looked at the picture before bringing it for framing she got out her paint brush and added a dot, a line, a shadow or covered over something that was too bright or too dark.  I was amazed. This was a new conversation for me. She went on to say that there are two moments in any of her paintings which cost her a lot – looking at the blank canvas and putting down the first stroke and finally accepting that this is finished.  Indeed, allowing this be the end!

 I was intrigued with this conversation and couldn’t wait to talk to Irma, my German artist friend, on WhatsApp.  I was bursting with new-found knowledge about the worries of an artist!  When I did talk to her, she said in her excellent English: “A painting is like life; difficult at the start and never really finished. I have come to accept with my own work that there is no real ending because when I have finished with the brush it lives on in my head and heart.”

The second ending is one I am currently experiencing for the  first time myself. I have recently begun attending a women’s craft group in Bettystown as a way of making friends and of taking up a skill long forgotten. I am beginning to crotchet again after many years. This is another saga of endings and of my finding it almost impossible to know where to end a row of crotchet!  The picture here tells the story which I will nonetheless describe.  I started out full of enthusiasm using a double crotchet stitch and was proud as punch as I moved along row after row; it is a small stitch, so progress was slow especially for a novice who needed to see my work grow!  I had real difficulty knowing where to insert the hook to create the last stitch on each line. In knitting this is easy as all the stitches are held together on the needle.

In the craft group I was doing pretty well but when I got home and continued without the guidance of Rita, an experienced crocheter, you can admire my handiwork!  I was all mixed up about my endings and produced this very uneven sample.  I was going in more and more and was on the verge of making an igloo shape when I finally gave up. My problem was endings not unlike the two artists!  I then began with a bigger, more visible, stitch – the treble. This is easier to see but it remains difficult for me to know where precisely to create the last stitch.

So, endings in the world of art and craft, as in life itself, can be a challenge and to be honest even knowing how to smoothly end this article wasn’t so easy either