I think one of the nicest benefits of knitting is clearing the mind. There is nothing like trying to figure out a lace pattern, color work, or making a pattern up, that takes all of your thoughts of the random and chucks it out. The total concentration of the doing eliminates the mind from wandering off on a list of things to do, worry about etc... It's a lovely benefit that often I don't think about. Maybe that is why I feel the need to knit, after an especially stressful day. Sometimes I will tell my coworkers. Just need to knit. Unconsciously does our bodies/minds know that we need to detach and just be? Total immersion in the fiber, feel, motion and then being in the present moment. As that credit card commercial says...Priceless. Gotta Knit