It seems like there are a lot of 103-year-old women out there who are still crocheting. There’s Oella Norman who spends 6+ hours per day crocheting and some of her other free time on a treadmill! Il est Grace vander Veen who has 30 great-grandchildren she can crochet for. And most recently, I’ve learned about Lydia Campbell.
Campbell was born in 1908 in Memphis, Tennessee but now lives in the Atlanta area. She says that one of the keys to keeping her mind active as she has aged is to do work with needle and thread. It would be more appropriate to say thread and hook, quoique, since Campbell is known for crocheting doilies.
The neat twist on Campbell’s doilies (besides that she’s still making them at age 103!) is that she carries them around with her to hand out to people. This seems to be a celebration of her longevity since she says:
“Anytime I find someone I haven’t given one to and they find out how old I am, it’s a joy for me to reach in my purse and get a little doily and give it to them.”
I have trouble working with thread instead of yarn and my hands and eyes are more than eighty years younger than hers. Kudos Ms. Campbell!
