Living with Loose Ends

A few days ago, I walked by one of my kids curled up under this blanket (The Babette Blanket, from Spring Interweave Crochet 2007?).  I said loudly to the walls, the wind, and any who might hear, “Couldn’t the person who made this weave in all the ends??!!”  Well, you would think!

And as I turned, it hit me.  Right there is a picture of my life!  Lots and lots of loose ends!  It seems that very little of what I do in life (and really for all of us, I think) is actually something to cross off a list for good.  Laundry, once washed and folded, has a way of piling up again.  Meals cooked and cleaned up only pave the way to the next meal that needs to be prepared.  Straightening the house only makes room for more stuff.  Lesson plans created and taught, must be created and taught once again as a new week/month approaches.  Money made has a way of disappearing and needing to be worked for again and again.  Drawings and paintings wind up half-finished.  Knit and crochet projects don’t even make it to the loose end stage…the once exciting project ends up stashed in a closet somewhere for who-knows-when.  And before I completely pull you down into an Ecclesiastes state of mind, crying “Meaningless, meaningless!”…there IS hope here, I know there is.

It’s the OTHER SIDE!  Turning my blanket over, the loose ends disappear!  (Well, almost all of them:) The “other side” is lovely, colorful, a finished work.  When I first finished crocheting the squares together (two years ago), I was so excited about using it I just didn’t have the patience to weave in all those ends.  Two years (and much use) later, the ends haven’t woven themselves in, and I think I shall just leave them there to remind me that on THIS side of life, THERE WILL BE LOOSE ENDS.  It won’t be ’til I’ve reached the other side, that I’ll finally have all loose ends woven in, and I’ll get to see the beauty.  To be sure, there’s beauty to be seen here on the unfinished side!!  I just don’t want to miss it whilst  fretting about all those loose ends!

P.S.  h/t to my husband for the title of this post.  He was standing within earshot of my loud declaration and said, “That’s a blog post!”

P.P.S. Here‘s what my blanket looks like on the other side.

0 thoughts on “Living with Loose Ends

  1. nancy t says:

    It’s a beautiful blanket – I love the variety of colors and sizes in it. Your observation about the loose ends in life is certainly right on. You husband was right – a great blog post! nancy

  2. Patsy says:

    Great post, Jennifer. Always a lesson learned and how nice it is to see a new post from you to start my day. And thanks for making me feel like my “loose ends” are a good thing !

  3. vickylw says:

    Corrie Ten Boom once wrote of a poem of a similar nature, about how our lives are tapestries woven by God — we see the underside, all messy and full of loose ends. But God sees the upper side.

    Excellent blog post; thank your husband for prompting you to share it! Gorgeous afghan too!

  4. Alex Tan says:

    LOVELY! A picture well taken too, 🙂 I bet that’s something someone can draw too. It’s going to take me forever to draw that since I am crazy about every details there hahahahaha

    • jenpedwards says:

      Oh, I love this thought…even our unfinished lives can provide something for others (warmth and comfort in the case of this blanket). Thanks a bunch!

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