They said sometimes we spend so much time looking at the seam that we forget to see the sweater.
And for some reason, that one stuck.
Not because I spend my days thinking about sweaters.
But because I immediately knew what it meant.
I’ve realized that when something matters to me, my attention naturally goes to the part that could be improved.
The rough edge.
The thing that isn’t finished.
The place where the pieces come together imperfectly.
I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad thing. It’s often how things get better.
But the analogy made me pause.
Because sometimes the thing I’m examining so closely is attached to something that’s actually working.
The seam might need attention.
The sweater might still be good.
Both can be true at the same time.
I think that’s what clicked for me.
Not every imperfection is evidence of a larger problem.
Sometimes it’s just the most visible thing because I’m standing so close to it.
So this week I’m carrying around a surprisingly useful reminder from a conversation:
Before deciding what the seam means, make sure you’ve looked at the whole sweater.
