Correcting my mistakes!

My knitting teacher, Hope, thought it would be best if we took a break in December. “But,” she said enthusiastically, “knit, knit, knit and bring one project you have finished and one you are working on to share with us when we meet in January.”

This seemed like a very lofty goal. I was working on a baby hat for our youngest grandson, Elliot. In order to make this hat, I had to learn a new stitch called a “purl.” With Hope’s direction, I was learning how to knit two stitches and purl two stitches alternating across each row. After several rows of this, long ridges were forming on the flat rectangular piece.

During the break, I had to call Hope for advice a few times and even went over to her house for help. Looking at the hat carefully, she found a couple of places where I had gotten mixed up and had switched the two stitches.

“I think you should take those stitches out and fix them,” she said. “You knit on the purls and purled the knits! If you don’t correct your mistakes you won’t be proud of your work” I must have had a look of pain on my face because she offered to help and showed how to fix the mistakes without having to tear out too much of the previous work. By the time I left her home, the mistakes were corrected and I had instructions on what to do next. Hope had even made two cute felt holders for my knitting needles and crochet hooks.

Well, I knit, knit, knit, but was only three-quarters of the way finished when we met for the first time in the New Year. “OK, so let’s see the hat,” she said. I held it up and she examined it.

“I’m not sure that I did this section right,” I confessed. I had taken some creative liberties with the directions. “Somehow, the ridges are gone. They’re supposed to run from the bottom of the hat to the top, right?” It didn’t take long before she figured out what I had done wrong.

“Just take out those last rows and… oh, look, here’s another purl stitch in the wrong place...” she said, pointing to an errant stitch.  She assured me that she would help me get started again at the end of the class. I silently pulled out several rows, all the while protesting inwardly at the loss of time and the backwards progress I was making.    

The real test of Hope’s advice to correct my mistakes came late one night when I was nearly finished. As I looked down the ridges of the hat, I found one purl stitch where it should have been a knit stitch. For several seconds, I debated back and forth with myself about what to do.     

“Don’t you want to be proud of your work?” Hope’s words came back to me.     

“No, Hope,” I pleaded, in our imaginary conversation, “I just want to finish it.” Finally, I conceded and began the laborious work of correcting that one little stitch. Knitting is teaching me much about myself, dear Readers, and some of it is not pleasant. Admitting that I’ve made a mistake and then taking the time to fix it have been very difficult. If this is something that you are facing, I will be praying for you. With the Lord’s help, we can learn from our mistakes and also from making the necessary corrections. All we need to do is ask! He loves us!

“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” — 1Cor. 10:31 NIV

“In my life Lord, be glorified, be glorified. In my life, Lord, be glorified today.” — (“Be Glorified” praise song, unlisted composer)



Judy Lowery lives in Springville. The Good News column appears regularly in the Porterville Recorder. Send e-mail to judylynnlowery@ocsnet.net.