Zai Karim moved to Halifax searching for community. “Coming here I was like, pick up a hobby, make some friends, build community,” she told CTV News Atlantic. She says she’s been going to the Halifax Central Library for around a year now, making friends and picking up a skill. “I saw that the library offered this program, and I really I love the library,” Karim says. “I feel like I’m a part of something, and it’s a really great way to just feel like you are present and in-person without having the stress of committing to something, and it’s drop-in, and so I can come when I’m not busy.” She says she recruits people everywhere she goes to join the free program on Wednesday afternoons. “Common Threads: Fibre Arts Drop-in” at the Halifax Central Library runs 1 p.m. until 3 p.m. The weekly program is where Karim met Nadia Champion. “I was crocheting before, but not at the same frequency for sure. It’s kind of enabled me to keep it going longer and more frequently,” Champion said. “Sometimes life gets in the way, but it’s a goal every week, for me it’s really about the community. As a disabled person, it can be a little hard to get out of the house and to meet new people, especially as an adult.” For Champion, the drop-in knitting sessions is a low-stakes way of meeting new people in the area. “I can come and if I’m having a higher pain day, that’s okay. I can just be a little more low-key. And they’re accepting of whatever way I show up,” she says. That is the kind of accessible programming the Halifax Library aims for. “One of the things that I love about how the library shows up for community is people can borrow a book, or they can just be here alone, or they can find community here,” said Åsa Kachan, CEO and chief librarian for the Halifax Libraries. “And I think that finding of community at the library is just one of the most important things we can do for Halifax, so this program is very low barrier. You don’t need to sign up, you just show up.” The libraries across the municipality all provide different programming allowing low barrier access. “There is some simplicity that comes with taking away all of that and just showing up as human beings next to each other,” added Kachan. “There is lots of good information and neuroscience around the benefits of knitting, the calming that comes with doing a repetitive motion. “And learning at the library is so rich and this is just another way of learning. This is learning with your hands. This is learning from your neighbors.” The library creates a space to learn from each other. “I learn something new every week. I see what some of my friends are making. I see what other people in the program are making, and then I’m inspired to try something new,” said Karim. “I’ve learned that I’m a committed knitter… And everybody here is so supportive and so giving of their time and their knowledge.” And the program doesn’t cost a thing. “Things are expensive, but also there aren’t that many ways to meet people. And people are kind of feeling lonely,” added Champion. “And it’s important to have those opportunities to meet people on an even playing ground and just a comfortable way.” Kachan has been a knitter for years, learning from her Swedish grandmother. Because of that, she knows that knitting is a universal language. “We know very clearly that our community also needs opportunities to make new friends and connect with each other. So, we think of the public library as almost like the social square,” she explained. “Where can you come in and bump into someone who you might not meet in your university class, or in your own neighborhood, and what opportunities are there for friendship?” While Karim focuses on a goal of knitting a sweater, Champion is most proud of her bed runner. As for Kachan, she loves to gift her knitting. “There is something called the sweater curse that you’re not supposed to knit for a boyfriend, or it’s going to break up the relationship. I’m happy to say I did not suffer from that,” she laughed. “My husband has had many, many sweaters. The most recent one, which he was really particularly fond of, is a custom Montreal Canadiens zip-up cardigan.” “But I think for me, the gifts that I give, if somebody has had a really hard time, I might knit them socks for the hard road they’ve walked, there’s a lot of meaning and expression in almost everything that I do.” With every stitch telling its own tale. “I love the wide openness of that, and I love the fact that it’s almost like storytelling,” said Kachan. “If I teach somebody, they turn around and teach somebody else. And now we’ve really created community and the work that we do together. So, it’s really that intersection between creativity and libraries, and culture, and community, and that’s where the magic happens.” For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
