Parable of Knitted Hats

In one of the dance studios I work the year's theme for the end of the recital was“This is My World”. Each week we would explore basic movements from traditional dancing from varying countries around the world. I was given a prompting while watching general conference, a biannual broadcast of messages from the Prophet and apostles, I needed these children to form a connection a love to the other children around the world and the best way to do this was through a service project, I was prompted to have them do service for children from around the world. Being assured that this was the right thing to do for my classes, I started searching the internet for a program where children can serve other children from around the world. I was surprised to find there are no such programs, not that I have found anyway, the closest thing I have found is a program called, “Kid Knits” (kidknits.org). This program consists of buying yarn from a few different countries where women make homespun yarn to support themselves and their families. The children then take that yarn and knit a hat on a hat loom from this yarn, they can keep or donate the hats once completed. The second option is the way I went with my dancers. We donated them to refugee children coming here to Utah.

I bought a kit for each of the classes I was teaching, the Holy Spirit confirming to me the rightness of my choice to do this as I purchased them and then more powerfully when they arrived on my door step and I opened them up.  Now the trick was to find and follow through with a balance of maintaining that which we needed to get done in class as far as preparing for our recital with that of wanting them to complete the hats. I am a firm believer that children should learn hard work and the joy in doing their own work. Depending on their ages I would do more or less work for them while in class. With my littles I simply had them place their hands on mine for their fine motor skills were not up to the task at first yet near the end however even a couple of them could do it on their own.  Comparted to the oldest class where they were so excited and able I need only teach them how and they took off even bringing in their own yarn and looms to each make a hat instead of the one perclass I had planned on. The children would come early and work on the hats and we would take short few minute breaks from learning and practicing choreography to work on them, yet as the weeks past and the recital was coming upon us, I had to admit we were not going to make it. My other goal was to have the hats completed as well so they would receive the reward of completing something they worked hard on for someone else. I began to wrestle with myself on what goals I could compromise on. I also made it a matter of prayer: was it better I work on the hats to get them finished, have a less clean dance to perform or not finish the hat by the recital and I finish them later? It was while I was going through this I received an amazing spiritual experience through the Holy Spirit’s prompting and as evidence of God’s love for me and the children I was teaching.

Not too often do I receive words in my head, more likely feeling of peace and comfort when I come to the Lord in prayer with a decision. I was leaning to the option of  working on the hats a little here and their over the weekend to be sure they would be completed by the recital and and their dances would not suffer; however I was feeling guilty it would not  be all their work. Until I heard the following words in my head and heart accompanied by a powerful feeling of peace,

“You do the stitches you can and I do the rest!”

In this personal parable I was representing the part of our Savior, these children were us in our lives, doing their absolute best they could. They simply were unable to do all that was required, so they would fail unless I did the stitches they could not. In the very same way that our Savior does for us as we turn to Him, and His Atonement, will make up the difference in our mortal and sinful state, while here on earth. Knowing of my love for the children I was teaching and what I was asking of them and seeing their efforts and understanding their hearts. I can better see how and why the Atonement can work for us. How much more the Savior does for us, then I could ever even try to do for these children!