The Three-Armed Sweater

I’m at my own birthday party. I shake the box, smile of anticipation on my face. I admire the shiny wrapping paper. I listen to the family around me guessing what wonders are inside. It’s a big box.

I tear the paper, keep the bow, and stick it on my head. I lift the lid.

I remove a beautiful rich thick soft sweater. The colors are wonderful. And as I hold it up, to see how it fits, laying it over my front I notice it has three arms.

Yes.

My angels gave me a gift, and what is it? A three armed sweater.

Well there are the obvious divine given gifts, that we love so much.

“I love my family! I love My dog! I love My home!”

What do I do with this three armed sweater, even if it came from my angels?

IF I wear this thing, I will be vexed all day long.

“What is that?” even strangers ask by the elevator.

“Yeah its a three armed sweater.”

“Huh. Well it is a great color.”

“Thank you.”

When I receive the three-armed sweater, There is something there, I can feel it. There is potential, there is so much energy and so much waiting to happen! It doesn’t fit — it can’t, it’s not right.

Something is missing. an element that I don’t have, and might never have. yet the truth remains, I’ve been given this gift by the divine.

Do you have a three armed sweater? It’s a funny metaphor, for me, to find a way I can finally accept the incredibly painful wounds from my life, that no human would claim are gifts.

Yet I am soaking daily in the truth, how can I forgive, accept, find peace?

So I ask myself honestly, would I recognize the seed of truth, before it has sprouted? Would I recognize the gift of truth, before maturing??

What if I were given the ugly bumpy seed of the deepest most powerful truth. The truth of human society- how to heal it, how to revitalize it. The truth of why I survived so many terrible things.

The lumpy seeds of truth, like the lumpy sweater with three arms, is not made for the present. Soil, water, patience. It requires nurturing, tending, and care. Respect, to keep me from checking endlessly, digging up the seeds of truth, “has it sprouted yet?”

How long will it take the seeds of truth to grow, to mature into something special? something happens when I do not belittle my gift. When I stop asking questions, stop blaming and arguing, and am grateful that my angels gave me a gift, even if it is a seed, or an ugly sweater.

To appreciate that which does not fit, and makes no sense, alters me.

I hold this seedling of truth, my patience and respect grow, and redefine who I am.

When my attitude remains sunny and I continue to give love and care for a sweater that cannot give me what I wanted. I am becoming. I am expanding. I am showing hopefulness and joy in the face of craziness. And to all those people around me, they discover who I am, they see quiet power in their midst, doing something very small, powerful, and smiling all the while.

The three arm sweater is a gift I have to grow into. and growing into it means doing the work, showing up when it makes no sense, caring when it looks like the investment is over, being there for an idea or a dream that seems to be lost. The three armed sweater fits a future version of me.

So it is for us to imagine a future that is currently unimaginable. It is for us to stretch our hearts to expand to accept and appreciate this crazy gift that anyone else would throw away. Because we make it beautiful, when we prove what matters to us is important. When we show what we’re willing to do because we care, even if we can’t have the thing that we were dreaming of. Then we truly create the meaning behind our actions.

This is the joy of accepting every gift, no matter how small, no matter how odd, in order to fulfill the purpose of who we are.

And suddenly, the sweater is our favorite! Because it’s a funny life, perhaps it will never make sense. And we wrap it, and give it to our most beloved friend. We laugh and laugh when they open it. And we smile and embrace and know, we all have lots of growing to do.