Following from where I left off last time -
And yet, and yet… so many new members have been drawn into the political parties which supported the YES Campaign. Maybe that was partly due to the very positive way the YES Campaign was conducted. Success? Who decides? Who’s asking? And when?
If we tour Knitting a Nation round 50 venues and 200 people admire it, can we say it has been successful? If we only manage 12 venues and 24 people is that a failure? People tend to respond very positively to seeing the map or hearing about the project. Do we need to know how many before we count that as success?
If we sell 1,000 postcards is that a success? If we sell 563 is that a failure?
If we get Knitting a Nation exhibited in the Scottish Parliament, will that be the ultimate success? If we fail to find a permanent home for it, will that mean the project was a failure? (One thing I certainly know– it’ll mean I can’t invite anyone to stay in my spare bedroom.)
Does Knitting a Nation reinforce our shared love of the land? If it makes anyone - even one person - wonder about what might have been, can we count that as a success?
Actually, it’s nothing about numbers, is it?
Does Knitting a Nation, our wonderful work of art, capture something of the joy, the energy, the anarchy, the passion, the enthusiasm of our YES Campaign? Is it a fitting reminder of a momentous period in our history?
Of course it does.
Next time I’ll tell you about the meeting at the Scottish Parliament
And yet, and yet… so many new members have been drawn into the political parties which supported the YES Campaign. Maybe that was partly due to the very positive way the YES Campaign was conducted. Success? Who decides? Who’s asking? And when?
If we tour Knitting a Nation round 50 venues and 200 people admire it, can we say it has been successful? If we only manage 12 venues and 24 people is that a failure? People tend to respond very positively to seeing the map or hearing about the project. Do we need to know how many before we count that as success?
If we sell 1,000 postcards is that a success? If we sell 563 is that a failure?
If we get Knitting a Nation exhibited in the Scottish Parliament, will that be the ultimate success? If we fail to find a permanent home for it, will that mean the project was a failure? (One thing I certainly know– it’ll mean I can’t invite anyone to stay in my spare bedroom.)
Does Knitting a Nation reinforce our shared love of the land? If it makes anyone - even one person - wonder about what might have been, can we count that as a success?
Actually, it’s nothing about numbers, is it?
Does Knitting a Nation, our wonderful work of art, capture something of the joy, the energy, the anarchy, the passion, the enthusiasm of our YES Campaign? Is it a fitting reminder of a momentous period in our history?
Of course it does.
Next time I’ll tell you about the meeting at the Scottish Parliament