Tinking

Tinking is the term knitters use to talk about taking out stitches.  It is fixing mistakes.  I find that I must keep at least 50% of my focus on the knitting.  I like to knit while listening to books or watching TV so that can be a problem at times when I get too focused on what I am listening to or watching instead of my knitting task.  So I now get the new section started before show/book starts and then do repetitions with my 50% focus.

Aren't our minds so amazing?  We can do things, think things, see things, hear things, feel things and even imagine things and many at the same time - with varied results.  I just love my mind.  I do have some kind of attention issues, but who doesn't?  But over my 62 years of life, I have been shown by the Spirit, therapy and reading just how to work with my mind and I am still learning today.  Mistakes are a part of life!  It took me many years to realize I was not a failure if I made a mistake.  The mistakes are teaching me, disciplining me to slow down, double check, and make a plan.  (I love to listen or read Brene Brown's books about this)

My mind has always worked very fast most of my life.  I think faster than I can write, so there needs to be lots of editing.  I speak faster than I think, so words come out that are not fully thought through.  Ouch!  This is painful.  I have learned to apologize and fix situations, quickly, but is it still painful.   Knitting 3 inches of the wrong stitch is painful to tink out.  That is probably 30 min of knitting time.  However, when I re knit the section properly it looks so good.  When I rewrite things, it feels great, etc. 

I think my attention issue was a real stumbling block for my earlier music study, too.  But I learned to look ahead while playing music, mark my music, and make a plan for practicing and performing.  I most recently have learned to be grateful for a good performance even if there was a slip or 2.  It is the big picture that matters.  

In my life, learning to appreciate the big picture has really made my life more joyful.  I have a plan to live which includes following the gospel of Jesus Christ; having, caring for and loving my family; teaching others music and enjoying and sharing my quilting and knitting, etc.  In all of these areas I have done a lot of tinking through the years.  When I complete a quilt or a knitting project I have forgotten about the tinking.  When I am loving my family, I try very hard to enjoy the day or the moments with them and leave all the tinking put away.  As for living the gospel of Jesus Christ, I will always be repenting, learning and growing.  And I have come to enjoy that about being a follower of Christ - always moving forward.  Thank you Father in Heaven for the ability to Tink and be forgiven.