In her small home in the capital of Greece, Athens, 93-year-old Ioanna Matsouka has knit (编织) thousands of brightly colored scarves for children in need. She has no plans to stop just yet.
Since she took up knitting in the 1990s, Matsouka has easily made over 3,000 scarves. By the door to her home, bags are filled with her latest creations. They are waiting for their new owners. A knitted blanket is thrown over a large chair where she spends her days.
In the beginning, the scarves were gifted to friends. As the number of scarves grew, they were given away 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 (难民) camp near Athens this winter, via the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR.
“The fact that we give them away gives her strength (力量),” said her daughter Angeliki. She talked about 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...”
Angeliki says her mother is an example of strength and hope. Matsouka wakes up every morning, drinks a glass of milk, puts on her jewelry (珠宝) and gets to work. She takes a break for lunch and a short sleep, then knits into the night. Matsouka knits one scarf a day now.
She may have even found the secret to a long life in it “Until I die, I will be knitting. It brings me joy to share them. It’s the happiness I get from giving,” she said, sitting beside a big blue bag filled with the knitting materials.
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