As the winter temperatures have been dropping, a group of women in Pisa have joined forces to knit scarves for those in need. They hang the completed scarves on lampposts across from the local soup kitchen with a short note translating to, “I am not a lost scarf! Please, take me with you if you’re cold. I will keep you warm.”
This movement has been coined “sciarpe sospese,” or suspended scarves, similar to the local tradition of “caffé sospeso,” in Naples, where individuals buy coffee for the next in line in or for someone in need in addition to their own. Moreover, “sciarpe sosprese” is not limited to Pisa; about two months ago in Bologna, on a particularly snowy winter day, scarves were tied around the trees in local square for the homeless.
So far, the group Knittable Pisa has knitted eleven scarves. On the first day, the colorful and unique scarves which decorated the path outside the soup kitchen were all picked up by the evening. The group hopes that the scarves proximity to the soup kitchen allows for those in need to get a hot meal and free scarf to keep them warm on the coldest days.
Knittable Pisa plans to continue using their passion for knitting as long as there is a demand. It takes less than a day to knit a single scarf, and although the group is small now, they have a strong resolve to unite and spread love through their knitting.
To read more in Italian, visit Florence’s La Repubblica news site. (anna rosin)
