This is my twelfth and
latest design for my Black Rock Desert Artist-in-Residency and I can see the end
of the tunnel. I have three more to finish in a few weeks and I am knitting as
fast as I can. This Saltgrass Stole is one of my favorites because it is a
light and subtle piece that quietly echoes some of the more serene times I
spent on the edges of the playa thinking, knitting, and creating.
Although saltgrass thrives
on the edges of the playa in Black Rock Desert, it is rarely noticed by
visitors who are awed by the vast space of the dry lakebed. It quietly grows in
the alkaline soil expelling salts from its leaves through salt glands. This
unassuming plant is vital in stitching together the edges of the playa and
maintaining the ecosystem of this beautiful desert.
Saltgrass drew me in and
made me notice it when I was forced to sit on the outskirts of the lakebed
because all the May rain made the playa unsafe for any vehicles. I would sit
and watch the rain wash over the flats, the grand vistas of a big desert. And
then shift my view to the immediate and small right in front of me. I am
grateful that I was forced to narrow my focus, it helped me see the trees for
the forest.
