January 20th was just another Saturday to some people. To me, it was so much more. It was the date of the second anniversary of the Women’s March. I made plans with my dearest, fiercest friend to head to the march together, set my alarm, and decided that I would knit my own pussy hat. It couldn’t be that hard, right? After all, I have been knitting now for months without a problem. Well, I was wrong.

There was something so exciting about being able to make my own pussy hat. I walked into Jo Ann Fabrics a week before the event to find the perfect color pink for my hat. I decided on a light pink that I was actually excited to wear, bought the right sized needles, and was on my merry way. Being the procrastinator that I am, I left three days between starting the hat and the event. No worries, because I was a pro knitter… Until I realized how much I had taken on.

Yes, I had the knits down and the right way to hold the needles, but this was so much hard than I thought. My fingers were raw and my mind hurt from following the pattern on just the first day. It was hard. I didn’t know if I could physically finish it before the event. The YouTube video said it should take more than a few hours. I was on hour number four and still nowhere near being done.

So I stopped. I put down the needles and I walked away. And by put down, I mean I threw the needles down, let my cat eat half of the yarn, and said a few swear words. Then I went to go bandage my fingers and drink a glass of wine.

Then something inside me lit like a fire. I couldn’t give up. How could I give up on a symbol of strength and unity? In the larger scale of things, it was just a hat. To me, it was a symbol of the fight.

Me knitting this hat was a small, but mighty thing that I could do to help the cause.

I didn’t care if my fingers were bruised and cramped for the day of the Women’s March. I was going in that hat. I was going to do my part to contribute, not just through my voice, but through my actions. That’s what the day is all about — making a difference. In this case, the “making” was literal.

This hat was not perfect by any means. The lines are a little bit wonky, it’s a little too big, and I had a heck of a time trying to get it off the needles. But I made it with my own hands. I wore it to the Women’s March, and I was really freaking proud of what I had made and the cause that I supported.

This is more than just a pussy hat. It’s proof that I will not give up.

The pussy hat is not the last one I will knit. It’s not the first thing I’ve done to make a difference in this fight, just like it won’t be my last. Next year I will have a whole army of hats to give, just like there are ever-growing people joining the fight for equality.

Knitting hats isn’t the only thing I’ll be doing in this upcoming year to spread the message of equality and get 50/50 by 2020. This year will be even more purposeful than the last, if you can believe it. I have ways that you can get involved too. No, it doesn’t involved knitting hats, don’t worry.

Did you guys go to the Women’s March? I know that the day is so much more than what you wore, but I’d love to hear if you wore pussy hats there and how the day went for you.

xx.