This morning I was re-making a custom set of prayer beads I had erred in constructing. I had intended each section to either have 4 sets of 3 beads or 3 sets of 4 beads, but in my distraction had set up 4 sets of 4 beads.

So I got out the needle and cord, a thicker cord than usual, and began stringing beads. At the first bead, there was some difficulty getting the bead over the eye of the needle and the doubled-up cord going through it. Grasping the needle was difficult, so I got a set of needle-nose pliers for that part.
Lesson one: Get a grip.
I put three tiny beads on the needle and got ready to draw them over and onto the cord. The first bead stuck fast, but it was hard for me to do much because the other two beads were on the needle. I had to take them off.
Lesson two: One bead at a time.
No matter what I tried, I could not get that bead to move over the eye and down the cord. The more I pulled, the more the teeth of the pliers dug into the needle, dimpling it, and the more strain occurred on the loop of cord through the eye, making me worry whether it would hold up.
Lesson three: I was trying to force a solution, and was becoming irritable, soon to be unreasonable.
I took the bead off the needle and tried another. It went just fine. I kept the things I’d learned so far at the top of my mind, and the set of beads came together smoothly. I tied my knot at the end and was satisfied.
Later, waiting for the bus, praying my beads, my prayers were suddenly thrown off. The wrong bead had occurred next. Looking at the beads, I saw that one section had two beads instead of three.
Lesson: I am human, and humans make mistakes.
I laughed out loud. Tomorrow I will make the beads again, but I will lay them all out at once to be sure I have them right.
Just for today, I will pray the beads I have and not let my perfectionism ruin the moment for me.