Greek Grandmother Makes Scarves for Children in Need
2024-03-14
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1In her small home in the capital of Greece, Athens, 93-year-old Ioanna Matsouka has knit thousands of brightly colored scarves for children in need from Greece to Bosnia to Ukraine.
2She has no plans to stop just yet.
3"Until I die, I will be knitting," Matsouka told Reuters.
4Her knitting tools called needles made noises through her expert fingers, her nails painted red.
5"It brings me joy to share them," she said.
6Since she took up knitting in the 1990s, Matsouka has easily made over 3,000 scarves, her daughters estimate.
7By the door to her home, bags filled with her latest creations await their new owners.
8A knitted blanket is thrown over a large chair where she spends her days.
9In the beginning, the scarves were gifted to friends.
10As the number of scarves grew, they were donated to children's homes across Greece.
11Then, through people she knew, they reached children in Bosnia and Ukraine.
12The latest 70 scarves went to a refugee camp near Athens this winter, via the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR.
13"The fact that we give them away gives her strength," said her daughter Angeliki.
14She recounted simple artwork and mail her mother received over the years: "Thank you, be well, keep going. You gave joy to children; you gave joy to people... That's her only reward: a letter, a few words."
15Matsouka knits one scarf a day now.
16Her eyesight suffers and she sometimes has severe facial pain, a condition known as trigeminal neuralgia.
17Angeliki says her mother is an example of strength and hope.
18Matsouka wakes up every morning, drinks a glass of milk, puts on her jewelry and gets to work.
19She takes a break for lunch and a short sleep, then knits into the night.
20She may have even found the secret to a long life in it, she says.
21"It's the happiness I get from giving," she said, sitting beside a big blue bag filled with the knitting materials.
22I'm Jill Robbins.
1In her small home in the capital of Greece, Athens, 93-year-old Ioanna Matsouka has knit thousands of brightly colored scarves for children in need from Greece to Bosnia to Ukraine. She has no plans to stop just yet. 2"Until I die, I will be knitting," Matsouka told Reuters. Her knitting tools called needles made noises through her expert fingers, her nails painted red. "It brings me joy to share them," she said. 3Since she took up knitting in the 1990s, Matsouka has easily made over 3,000 scarves, her daughters estimate. 4By the door to her home, bags filled with her latest creations await their new owners. A knitted blanket is thrown over a large chair where she spends her days. 5In the beginning, the scarves were gifted to friends. As the number of scarves grew, they were donated to children's homes across Greece. Then, through people she knew, they reached children in Bosnia and Ukraine. The latest 70 scarves went to a refugee camp near Athens this winter, via the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR. 6"The fact that we give them away gives her strength," said her daughter Angeliki. 7She recounted simple artwork and mail her mother received over the years: "Thank you, be well, keep going. You gave joy to children; you gave joy to people... That's her only reward: a letter, a few words." 8Matsouka knits one scarf a day now. Her eyesight suffers and she sometimes has severe facial pain, a condition known as trigeminal neuralgia. 9Angeliki says her mother is an example of strength and hope. 10Matsouka wakes up every morning, drinks a glass of milk, puts on her jewelry and gets to work. She takes a break for lunch and a short sleep, then knits into the night. 11She may have even found the secret to a long life in it, she says. "It's the happiness I get from giving," she said, sitting beside a big blue bag filled with the knitting materials. 12I'm Jill Robbins. 13Karolina Tagaris reported this story for Reuters. Gregory Stachel adapted it for VOA Learning English. 14________________________________________________ 15Words in This Story 16knit - v. to make (a piece of clothing) from yarn or thread by using long needles or a special machine 17scarf - n. a long piece of cloth that is worn on your shoulders, around your neck, or over your head 18joy - n. a feeling of great happiness 19blanket - n. a covering made of cloth that is used especially on a bed to keep you warm 20reward - n. money or another kind of payment that is given or received for something that has been done or that is offered for something that might be done