***gently patting butterflywing***
no, my dear, you do not have to know why, but isn't it wonderful that we have a little LoveBug who does understands and knows why - - and TRIES to help the rest of us "see the light"?
I am beginning to understand it a bit better, but I still appreciate that there are clever minds that grasped the concept right off the bat!
Before I began quilting, I was a knitting/crocheting pro .... when magazines started coming out with patterns, whole magazines of patterns, I began to suspicion that there was something about this craft that went beyond the simple, knit one, purl two, chain three, single crochet in the second chain from the hook, etc ....
There were too many patterns appearing out of thin air ... I had worked at the craft for almost two decades when it dawned on me: These patterns were based on numbers! Then, a magazine called "Magic Crochet" came out with charts, rather than written words and it was as clear as a bell - - there WERE machines that people were using to plug in numbers and create patterns with.
Another decade after that, and we purchased our first computer and started messing around with calculators ...
I still don't understand it all, but I surely applaud those of us who grasp it and can use that comprehension to turn the concepts into fun crafts and products. <wave>