Opinion: We don’t give a darn about old socks now

0

Commentary by Ward Degler

Even as I did it, something seemed wrong. I had just thrown away a pair of socks because they had holes in the heels. My work shoes, the ones I wear to grub around in the garden, spread mulch or pull weeds, have a leather ridge at the heels that wears through my socks.

There is nothing unusual in that. The shoes and boots I had as a kid did the same thing. The difference between then and now is that back then we didn’t toss the holey socks. Mom darned them, and we continued to wear them until they could no longer be repaired.

For anyone who hasn’t a clue what darning is, it’s a process of weaving new fabric to fill a hole in cloth. Every mom, grandmother, aunt or big sister back then had a darning egg in their sewing basket along with needles, thread, patches of different kinds of cloth, thimbles and a cloth tape measure.

Mom’s darning egg resembled a large wooden egg with a handle on one end. She would stick the egg into the sock, expose the hole and start running her needle and thread back and forth across the hole, first one way, and then the other until a new patch of fabric had filled the hole.

Most of the time Mom was able to match the color of my socks with yarn of a similar hue and texture — most of the time. I did wind up with one pair of brown socks that had red patches, however. I made a point of wearing them only with boots that would cover the patches.

There was another difference between then and now. Today, it was easy for me to go to my sock drawer and pull out another pair to replace the ones I had thrown away. Back then, I remember having only three pairs of socks: Two day-to-day pairs and one reserved for Sunday.

Today if I need socks, underwear, jeans or shirts, I go buy them. Buying anything back then was difficult. We were still in the grips of the Great Depression and no one had any extra money. Most folks struggled to get by.

We were lucky. Dad earned $125 a month in his job with the Forest Service. A trifle by today’s standards, of course, but it was enough to put us in better shape than most of our neighbors.

We grew and canned much of our own food, and when we bought something, it had to last. When it broke or got a hole in it, we fixed it. Or, in the case of my socks, Mom darned them.


Current Morning Briefing Logo

Stay CURRENT with our daily newsletter (M-F) and breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox for free!

Select list(s) to subscribe to



By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: . You can revoke your consent to receive emails at any time by using the SafeUnsubscribe® link, found at the bottom of every email. Emails are serviced by Constant Contact
Share.

Current Morning Briefing Logo

Stay CURRENT with our daily newsletter (M-F) and breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox for free!

Select list(s) to subscribe to



By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: . You can revoke your consent to receive emails at any time by using the SafeUnsubscribe® link, found at the bottom of every email. Emails are serviced by Constant Contact