Has the Roomba of life ever dragged you into a knotted mess? Well, one Sunday afternoon, I tried to relax. I stood up and saw this scene. It looked so cozy and idyllic, and I planned to take this photo. I enjoyed my knitting…. using the beautiful yarn bowl my siblings gave me...coffee…. in a favorite Fiesta mug….. the possibility of reading a book….. forgetting the ugly Green Bay Packer game.
But before I took a photo, I went to the kitchen for more coffee (yeah, it’s late. I’m living dangerously), and everything unraveled... literally.
I turned around and saw the Roomba dragging my knitting across the living room and the yarn spinning like crazy in the yarn bowl.
Shrieking like a madwoman, I went to rescue my knitting. I decided this is almost worse than the classic Roomba in the dog poo story. (Have you heard that one?)
I picked up the knitting, gently pulled the yarn loose, trying not to break it. It was twisted and had some junk from the Roomba around it. I had to repair several loose stitches and rewind the yarn.
I snapped this photo before winding the yarn or repairing the stitches.
Haha, what a funny story, but then I thought (yep, my brain works in illustrations) this has some applications.
I carefully edited this photo to leave out the fan cord on one side, crop out the pile of yarn. The knitting turned so the loose stitches didn’t show.
So many times, we look at people’s lives or “big names” on social media and see carefully edited images. We don’t see the behind-the-scenes or the stress and hurts in the lives behind the photos.
We look at people who have things we want or only dream of and think they aren’t dealing with the things we deal with. I’m not suggesting that you should assume everyone is hiding something, but remember that everyone has stuff, whether or not they share it with you.
The other thing that I contemplated while unwinding that yarn from the Roomba…. and talking to it. Yep, I’m kinda attached to my yarn …….
I didn’t want to hurt the yarn or break it, although I absolutely would have cut it to accomplish my goal if it became necessary.
I unwound it and pulled the hair off of it, then rewound the ball and tucked it neatly back into the bowl. I grabbed another knitting needle to pick up the loose stitches. I had to study the stitches for a while to see how to repair them.
I didn’t trash it or declare it worthless because it got tangled in a mess it couldn’t extricate itself from without care and attention.
I didn’t put it on the shelf and ignore it because of frustration.
Although I have no idea how this happened, I didn’t blame my project for getting stuck in the Roomba.
I think God is much like this (of course infinitely better) even if we jump into messes or find ourselves in a mess that was not our own doing; He extricates us gently, speaking gentle words of love over us, but if things need cutting to restore, He’s ready to do so.
God doesn’t declare us worthless or beyond hope—ever. He will restore us in a way best suited to His plans, whether that’s picking up a few loose stitches or radically unraveling things to a new starting place.
I pray that when people see my mistakes and messes when the Roomba of life drags me, they will be gentle with me and come alongside to be a part of the restoration.
I pray I will remember to be a helper in others’ lives and recognize their precious value and worth, even if their life’s Roomba has dragged them into a tangled mess.
We all have a few loose stitches. Be gentle and love people as God loves you.
P.S. Here’s the final product–it didn’t turn out too badly after all. Here’s a similar knitting pattern–I couldn’t find the original.