So it's another typical day... I have somehow managed to start all 17 things on my "to do" list, and have finished roughly ZERO of them. Yay for me! This is usually how it goes when I finally have a couple days off in a row to play "catch up."
I have 4 loads of laundry sitting on the couch that will no doubt need to be re-fluffed later.
I gathered up every rug in the house b/c they just HAD to be cleaned right now, and 2of them disentegrated in the washing machine. After I sucked out thousands of rubbery bits of nastiness with my vacuum cleaner that I HAVEN'T used on the carpets yet, I realized that I really needed to sort through the kids' clothes and bag up what needs to go to the Salvation Army. Perfect time to do that, right?
While in the girls' room I noticed that the dust bunnies under their bed were starting to mate. Well that just wouldn't do, so they joined the rubbery remnants from the rugs in the bottom of the vacuum cleaner.
Break for lunch, and then the refrigerator really needed cleaning out.
(Sheila, don't forget to check on Ya'shar and Ni'ke b/c they're awfully quiet...)"Ni'ke, what's that in your hand? Are you hiding something?"
"No." Hmmmm..... Her third lie already today and it's not even noon.
I found her with a pair of scissors in one hand and a newly bald My Little Pony in the other. Grateful that SHE wasn't bald, but pretty unhappy about the lying AGAIN, I sent her upstairs to her room for one of the naps that she reminded me she doesn't need anymore. I reminded HER that there were worse punishments for lying than an un-needed nap, and she should be grateful....
Pay the bills, make 3 Dr's appointments, pick up the kids from school, run to the bank, politely tell the hospital that NO, I'm NOT available to pick up an extra shift tonight, make dinner, check Ma-lak and Rea's homework, re-load their backpacks... and so on and so forth.
I'm sure that this sounds very familiar to many of you!
(sigh)
Yeah, so it's one of those days. But here's the real kicker.... The 5-year old's voice of reason. The jolt of perspective that makes all the "duties and to-do lists" fade into the background.
"Mommy, how come we haven't read the Bible yet this week?" Rea asked me.
*GULP*
Well that is a really good question. One that I will someday have to answer for in a far more serious situation than just a dinner-table discussion.
Why did I prioritize a clean kitchen floor ahead of taking time to teach my children?
Why is it that this isn't the first, second, or third time I've had to answer this question?
I share this story with you because I know I'm probably not alone, and a gentle reminder of what's really important never hurt anybody... (And hurt feelings don't count - they just distract you and detain you from getting back to where you SHOULD be! Been there!)
Thank you, Lord, for reminding me (through my CHILDREN!) that a clean heart and right spirit and shiny attitude trump a spotless kitchen floor any day.
I'm so blessed by my children, and am FLOORED some days when I think of how important a job I've been given. They were entrusted to me for just a little while... Lord, help me to make every moment count and to take time and MAKE time for the things that are really the most crucial!
"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." Proverbs 22: 6
