Inside Out

A few weeks ago I embarked on a sewing adventure. Yes, I took on the monumental task of putting together a crib bumper, crib sheets, curtains, a bedskirt, quilt, and a pillow for a dear friend of mine who did not like the baby designs out in the market. So as a gift to her and her child, I volunteered to put together a baby set for Skye's room. The curtains and crib sheets were not a problem. That was simply cutting out rectangles and putting little touches here and there. Now the crib bumper was a different story. I used 5 different fabrics, created my own trim with double piping and ruffles... the end result was beautiful. The problems arose when I was sewing all the pieces together, the trim and the tie straps, the front and the back, batting here, batting there. Since it was circular, I had to leave an opening so I could turn it inside out and then baste the opening by hand. I was quite proud of myself when I got to that point - no major mishaps. And then came time to turn it inside out. Remember it was circular. So I'm pulling from one end and pulling from the other end. The result was a tube inside another tube - tubular infinity! No matter how much I pulled it would never result back into a circular tube. The opening I had created was located on the wrong side of the tube. I had to cut the tube, turn it inside out and then connect it again by hand. After countless hours, many finger prickings, and a bucket of frustrated tears, the bumper was complete, ready to be installed in Skye's crib to protect her little head from unprecedented bumps. And it was beautiful. The tubular incident made me think of my relationship with God. How He deals with me and my controlling attitude. I'm pulling from this end, pulling from that end, frustrated with the results, a tube inside a tube. I'll never be that continuous tube He wants me to be. But then I let the Master Sewer cut me, pull me inside out, lovingly stitch me back to become the useful human He envisioned me to be. Somehow I manage to turn myself outside-in again and the process starts all over again. A work in progress. Ah, but He is so patient and skilled.