A Prayer Shawl

Last week my sister's employer found out she has breast cancer and informed her staff that she would be taking a leave of absence for a few weeks. My Mom came up with the idea to make a prayer shawl for her. We all decided to work on it together through this next week.

I have knitted many scarves and blankets before and it's always just to keep busy while sitting in front of the television. Although, Sunday evening I just sat there in the silence, by myself, with the thunder rolling outside...putting prayer and thought and love into what I was knitting. It was such a good feeling to reflect on what this woman was going to be going through and what I could do with my hands to possibly bring her comfort during that time. I also took the time to be grateful to God for what I have and how fortunate I am for my good health. This is another way of staying close to God. I want to stay focused on using the abilities God gave me to serve others.

I also have to mention that I was struggling with a few mistakes at first and became frustrated. I was praying for the focus on why I was knitting this and that it didn't need to be perfect. My little sister encouraged me later with a quote she found. "As I knit through the creation of the shawl, I gratefully acknowledge the imperfections, weaving them into my prayers and intentions for the one who will be wrapped in and blessed."

Hopefully we can finish it in a week! Thanks for visiting!

An Awakening Moment

I had a major hiccup with my quote project and struggled to find the words or ideas to blog today. It was a busy day working in the salon and I had an awakening moment!

Halfway through my day, one of my regular clients arrived. As I walked up to talk about what we would be doing with her hair today, I noticed she looked very tired and upset. She had tears in her eyes as she told me she wanted to shave all of her hair off. I have been cutting this woman's hair for five years and have become close with her. We both just looked at each other and had a moment of pure reality of what this meant. We both had tears. She was diagnosed with breast cancer last year. She had surgery and then went into remission. A few weeks ago it had gotten worse and she began a very forceful treatment causing her hair to fall out. She decided she couldn't stand the torture of finding clumps of hair on her pillow and decided to have me cut it all at once. I was very resistant at first, but after she had explained, I pulled her into my chair and told her how fantastic she would look! This is honestly a haircut I have never done before so I was telling her she was helping me as well. I took the clippers and began shaving her head as tears rolled down her face. This made it real. I began to lighten it up with other subjects and tried my best to make her feel good. 

She walked out of the salon with no hair on her head, but she was so brave with a smile. She inspired me today. This makes my daily problems seem so small. Thank God, for he gives us these awakening moments to teach us. I thank God for my blessings.