By Annie Turner

Recently, I started knitting a Reiki shawl for my husband as a belated Christmas present. The yarn is this astonishing, hand-dyed Bad Sheep yarn in a multitude of bright colors. I finished one ball and got set to stretch out the next skein and roll it into a ball. Somehow, something went badly wrong. Satanically wrong. Throw the skein out the window and begin again with a new one, except at $30 a pop, I just couldn’t do it. So, I set about unraveling this unholy mess. It took three days of dire intention and will. I set my Apple Watch for 15 min. each time so I wouldn’t get crazy with the untangling bit. Finally, it was done. I literally was covered in sweat. But I had that damn ball all wrapped up and ready to go!

So, here is what I did, and perhaps, just perhaps, it might apply to something in your life which is all balled up, and you cannot figure out how to untangle it, be it a: relationship, job problems, a parent’s worries, house gone wrong, kids in trouble, and more. As someone who had been without central heating for 9 days, I sympathize with you.

As I sat on the couch with the balled up yarn on my lap, feeling defeated and angry, what came to me were these words: “Follow the thread.” God works that way, kind of snarky, with few words, and a kick in the pants. Get busy, woman, follow the thread! What was not said was this: And you will be alright. You will come to the end. You will get it figured out.

That is what I did as I prayed to Mary Undoer of Knots, as I said many Hail Mary’s to keep myself calm, and just got on with it.

If you are finding yourself in a tangle of something awful, here are some thoughts which may or may not be useful.

—Go back to the beginning. Find the starting part of the problem and then slide your fingers along how it developed. You may gain insights. You may come to the end of it all with a sense of purpose and understanding.

—Don’t try to unwrap that yarn all in one go. Set a timer for no more than 15 min. at a time because, ya’ know, we are only human and get sweaty, frustrated, and inclined to heave the problem out the window.

—Pray, even if you are not sure there is a God, that God listens to you, or that God has the ability to help you. Prayer is one of the most effective things I know for untangling a problem. Try it. You might find an answer coming to you the way I did amidst my anger, “Follow the thread.”

—Keep a journal. Write down what thoughts and insights come to you as you focus on your ball of tangled wool.

—Ask for help. (I am terrible at this. I am meant to be “the helper” not the “helpee.” That might be a prayer partner; it could be a pastor or priest; it could be a site you belong to on FB (what would I have done during cancer if I had not connected to others? If I had not joined a Dysautomia group later on?); and finally, it could be a friend whose wisdom you trust. You know what will work for you. Just do it. Do not be afraid to ask!

—Go for a walk. How many of us have found that getting out in nature, breathing deeply, watching the pines sway in the wind, and seeing birds take flight have settled the turmoil inside? You may find you walk back into your house with an answer to your knotty problem

Those are just a few things which you could do as you search for an end to the tangled thread in your life. I have tried all at one time or another in my now rather long life (78 years). Follow the thread and see where it leads you. I am betting a solution will appear to you and you might mutter to yourself, “Why didn’t I think of that before?”

Annie Turner is an author who lives in Williamsburg and worships at Haydenville Congregational Church. Her blog “Faith is My Operating System” can be found at https://faithismyos.blogspot.com