Sometimes I just get so caught up in everyday life that I don’t really realize how amazing my life is.
I had a 'WOW' moment this morning. You know, those moments when you take a step outside of the 'routine', if even for a second, and contemplate your life (or a single aspect of your life) and are overwhelmed with how wonderful it is. I have such an amazing wife. She is awesome. She is wonderful. On top of that, we have 4 children.
Following that 'WOW' moment came a moment of feeling OVERWHELMED. First, OVERWHELMED with all the blessings that I have been given and then also a little OVERWHELMED with all the responsibilities I have that come with those blessings.
This moment had really great timing, because I have been a little too focused on my job and work, and not focused enough on my home and family. Will I be able to spend more time at home? Probably not. But it is nice to have the reminder to make sure that I use the time I do have with my family in the best way possible.
I am really a lucky guy. I have so many blessings.
WOW.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Friday, May 21, 2010
Change of Metaphor
So remember my post about a light at the end of the tunnel? Well, I used the wrong metaphor.
What I should have said was this:
That's what I should have said.
What I should have said was this:
Imagine trying to tread water in the middle of the ocean. You find yourself bobbing up and down, sometimes buried in the water for a little bit, but every once in a while (hopefully), you get your head above water and take a breath before you go back under for a little while.
I have this project at work I've been working on for a very long time. Yeah, it's like that.
That's what I should have said.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Simpler Times
So I was in the kitchen at my work, and I went to throw something away and it brought back a couple of (ancient) memories. The kitchen at my work has granite countertops, and there is a square hole cut in it with a garbage can in the cupboard beneath.
It suddenly made me think of back when I was in elementary school. In the cafeteria, the kids would go through the line, get their food, and then eat. When we were done, we’d turn in our trays and head outside to play on the playground for lunch recess. I remember in my later elementary years, I got to help with lunchroom duty. It’s something that I would hate now, but that I absolutely loved back then. I would go to the lunchroom and take up a certain post. My favorite (which I now look back at and cringe) was the scraper. Basically, there was a window that everyone would slide their trays into (with food and garbage still on it) on their way out to the playground. I would be behind the window, grab the tray, and with a big rubber spatula thing, I would scrape the food and garbage into a hole in the stainless steel counter, underneath which were large garbage cans and send the trays on to be washed/sterilized. It was challenging enough to keep up with the flow of kids, but I remember the mean 6th grade bullies who would try to catch you off guard and slide their tray right into the hole and into the garbage can. They would (almost) never get past me!
I remember enjoying getting out of class for other assignments as well, such as office helper/runner. I would sit at a desk in the office for part of the day and run errands and/or help the office staff with anything like filing or whatever they needed. (Looking back, I wonder if I didn’t get that assignment just so my mom, working in the office, could keep a closer eye on me. I don’t remember very many kids who got that job.) I also enjoyed being on bathroom duty. I would sit by the bathrooms at recess and make sure that the playground aide had given the kids a bathroom pass before I would let them in. Another one I remember enjoying being a crossing guard. I even got to wear an official badge!
As I look back on those responsibilities I was entrusted with, I realize that I am grateful for opportunities throughout my life to sort of slowly grow into responsibility. I didn’t get it handed to me all at once, where one day, I wasn’t responsible for anything and the next I had tons of stuff to worry about, but it came gradually. It helps me remember that I have been prepared for the wonderful, crazy life I live now, and all the stuff I have to do. Speaking of stuff I have to do, I’d better get to it.
It suddenly made me think of back when I was in elementary school. In the cafeteria, the kids would go through the line, get their food, and then eat. When we were done, we’d turn in our trays and head outside to play on the playground for lunch recess. I remember in my later elementary years, I got to help with lunchroom duty. It’s something that I would hate now, but that I absolutely loved back then. I would go to the lunchroom and take up a certain post. My favorite (which I now look back at and cringe) was the scraper. Basically, there was a window that everyone would slide their trays into (with food and garbage still on it) on their way out to the playground. I would be behind the window, grab the tray, and with a big rubber spatula thing, I would scrape the food and garbage into a hole in the stainless steel counter, underneath which were large garbage cans and send the trays on to be washed/sterilized. It was challenging enough to keep up with the flow of kids, but I remember the mean 6th grade bullies who would try to catch you off guard and slide their tray right into the hole and into the garbage can. They would (almost) never get past me!
I remember enjoying getting out of class for other assignments as well, such as office helper/runner. I would sit at a desk in the office for part of the day and run errands and/or help the office staff with anything like filing or whatever they needed. (Looking back, I wonder if I didn’t get that assignment just so my mom, working in the office, could keep a closer eye on me. I don’t remember very many kids who got that job.) I also enjoyed being on bathroom duty. I would sit by the bathrooms at recess and make sure that the playground aide had given the kids a bathroom pass before I would let them in. Another one I remember enjoying being a crossing guard. I even got to wear an official badge!
As I look back on those responsibilities I was entrusted with, I realize that I am grateful for opportunities throughout my life to sort of slowly grow into responsibility. I didn’t get it handed to me all at once, where one day, I wasn’t responsible for anything and the next I had tons of stuff to worry about, but it came gradually. It helps me remember that I have been prepared for the wonderful, crazy life I live now, and all the stuff I have to do. Speaking of stuff I have to do, I’d better get to it.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Mothers
So this is a blog about things that I'm thinking about, right? Well, as so often happens, I need someone or something to remind me what I should already be doing or thinking about. So of course, on Mother's Day, I spent a fair chunk of time thinking about Mothers.
Mothers, in general, are amazing. They grew up wanting to just have cute little babies and take care of them and nurture them and be proud of them. They get married, and want to start their family. They carry that baby for 9 months or so, giving up so much (being pregnant, from my observation, is no picnic), and then they go through the most beautiful, odd, painful process that I've ever seen (and I was just there with my meager contribution of a few encouraging words and a hand to hold). They then proceed to give up sleep, a hot meal (it's always cold by the time the kids have been served), personal time and space, and just about everything they know as "normal". Most of the time, they do it lovingly, with a smile on their face, and knowing that they will have to do it at least 364 more times in the next year. This sacrifice is only more poignant because they don't really get any awards, or very much recognition. It doesn't advance any career aspirations, and they don't get paid for it. There is one meager day on the calendar that reminds us that it is Mother's Day, and more often than not, at least in the case of my lameness, it sneaks up faster than I am prepared for.
So why do they do it? Well, sometimes all it takes is is a little smile, or somthing funny that one of the kids says, or without the kids knowing she's listening, she hears the kids playing nicely together. She sees her child do one nice thing for someone else (doesn't even have to be her), and her heart swells with pride. That kind of stuff gives her motivation. Sometimes, she gets down, and then her two-year-old wants nothing more than to "nuggle" with his mom. Even though she wishes that he would just want to "nuggle" with dad, or brother sometimes, she is also secretly very happy that he likes her best. Or maybe she is trying to get some work done, and her 5-year-old, without being prompted, wants to help. Sure, it'd be faster if she could just do it herself, but it makes her smile that he would rather spend time with her than play a video game, watch tv, or jump on the trampoline, even if it's only for 15-30 minutes. Or perhaps it is her 6-year-old daughter who tries to do "girly" things with mom because they are the only girls in the family, and they have to watch out for each other. Mom just loves it after spending a bunch of time "prettying her up", and then sees her daughter looking in the mirror, admiring how girly and pretty she looks. Or maybe it's the 8-year-old, who will hear the two-year-old being really upset (possibly because mom won't "nuggle" right at that moment because she's busy making dinner or something like that), and without being asked, takes time to try to not only distract the 2-year-old, but play with him and be silly with him until he's laughing his guts out. Just because he wants to help. And at this age, it really is help.
This stuff is the stuff that moms live for. It may come as a few moments here and there out of long periods of not-so-fun cleaning, teaching, helping, doing, washing, shopping, cooking, or planning. There may be long stretches of thanklessness, laziness, and procrastination (and that's just from the husband!) that she has to deal with in between these brief gems. But to mom, it's all worth it in the end.
Moms are amazing. I need to be more grateful and helpful to the mother of my children. She deserves it. And I'm sorry to my own mom that there weren't more "gems" from me for her to enjoy when I was a child. Ah well, the things we learn as we grow up, especially from our moms!
Love to all the mothers out there. Know that we (kids and dads) really do love and appreciate you every moment of every day, even if we suck at showing it.
Mothers, in general, are amazing. They grew up wanting to just have cute little babies and take care of them and nurture them and be proud of them. They get married, and want to start their family. They carry that baby for 9 months or so, giving up so much (being pregnant, from my observation, is no picnic), and then they go through the most beautiful, odd, painful process that I've ever seen (and I was just there with my meager contribution of a few encouraging words and a hand to hold). They then proceed to give up sleep, a hot meal (it's always cold by the time the kids have been served), personal time and space, and just about everything they know as "normal". Most of the time, they do it lovingly, with a smile on their face, and knowing that they will have to do it at least 364 more times in the next year. This sacrifice is only more poignant because they don't really get any awards, or very much recognition. It doesn't advance any career aspirations, and they don't get paid for it. There is one meager day on the calendar that reminds us that it is Mother's Day, and more often than not, at least in the case of my lameness, it sneaks up faster than I am prepared for.
So why do they do it? Well, sometimes all it takes is is a little smile, or somthing funny that one of the kids says, or without the kids knowing she's listening, she hears the kids playing nicely together. She sees her child do one nice thing for someone else (doesn't even have to be her), and her heart swells with pride. That kind of stuff gives her motivation. Sometimes, she gets down, and then her two-year-old wants nothing more than to "nuggle" with his mom. Even though she wishes that he would just want to "nuggle" with dad, or brother sometimes, she is also secretly very happy that he likes her best. Or maybe she is trying to get some work done, and her 5-year-old, without being prompted, wants to help. Sure, it'd be faster if she could just do it herself, but it makes her smile that he would rather spend time with her than play a video game, watch tv, or jump on the trampoline, even if it's only for 15-30 minutes. Or perhaps it is her 6-year-old daughter who tries to do "girly" things with mom because they are the only girls in the family, and they have to watch out for each other. Mom just loves it after spending a bunch of time "prettying her up", and then sees her daughter looking in the mirror, admiring how girly and pretty she looks. Or maybe it's the 8-year-old, who will hear the two-year-old being really upset (possibly because mom won't "nuggle" right at that moment because she's busy making dinner or something like that), and without being asked, takes time to try to not only distract the 2-year-old, but play with him and be silly with him until he's laughing his guts out. Just because he wants to help. And at this age, it really is help.
This stuff is the stuff that moms live for. It may come as a few moments here and there out of long periods of not-so-fun cleaning, teaching, helping, doing, washing, shopping, cooking, or planning. There may be long stretches of thanklessness, laziness, and procrastination (and that's just from the husband!) that she has to deal with in between these brief gems. But to mom, it's all worth it in the end.
Moms are amazing. I need to be more grateful and helpful to the mother of my children. She deserves it. And I'm sorry to my own mom that there weren't more "gems" from me for her to enjoy when I was a child. Ah well, the things we learn as we grow up, especially from our moms!
Love to all the mothers out there. Know that we (kids and dads) really do love and appreciate you every moment of every day, even if we suck at showing it.
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