The Little Things
Joy, humor and laughter: most of the time they do not come naturally to me; I must choose them. Finding them in momentous occasions or milestones or in times of great blessings is easy. But what about the rest of the time: the daily routines, the chores, the little moments? It's not so easy then; and I find I am merely enduring life, rather than embracing in it.
When the baby spills a vase full of water all over the dining room table and floor, I am not amused. Or, when I am stuck in a long line at a store, or receiving poor or, worse, non-existent service, I am tempted to sigh and complain. When one of the kids can't find something and comes to me to find it, I impatiently mount a search. And there is always the repetitive happenings: the scramble to find shoes at the last minute; the agony over how someone's hair or clothing looks; the squabbling over who gets what seat at the table or in the car. And as I bang my head against the wall, I ask myself: "Haven't they worked this out yet? Haven't they figured out how to solve this? Why does this happen every time?" There are countless little moments such as these in any given day. But these are all opportunities to stretch myself, to reach for more than mere endurance, and embrace my life.
More and more, I am pushing myself to look for humor and joy in the small things in my life. Let's face it, most of my life is filled with the mundane, not the momentous events; so why not turn those moments into something good? It's not that I am complaining about how dull my life is; I have received many great blessings and have participated in many momentous occasions, it's just that they are far outweighed by the daily ones. But, if I can turn those into opportunities to rejoice, crack a joke or make someone else laugh, wouldn't my life be filled with joy? And wouldn't I spread joy to others, especially to my children? Think of the potential for spreading smiles!
As I have grown older, and maybe a bit wiser, I find myself laughing at these kinds of situations (except maybe the spilled water), seeing how silly they are and how silly of me to get angry or cry. When I help the kids search for lost items as if I were Holmes or Miss Marple, it makes it more fun. And while I haven't found much fun in the squabbling over places at the table or in the car, I have discovered that assigned places prevent arguments. Even a kid who has to wear inappropriate shoes because his have been missing for days makes me giggle now. It's when I am in the moment, I need to challenge myself to choose a better response than the one that comes naturally. It doesn't always happen; I fail many times. But even in the reaching, the trying, I find I am inching closer to the goal, and that encourages me to keep at it. May God help me find joy in the mundane, humor in the irritating; laugh at the little things. And may I remember to share it.
When the baby spills a vase full of water all over the dining room table and floor, I am not amused. Or, when I am stuck in a long line at a store, or receiving poor or, worse, non-existent service, I am tempted to sigh and complain. When one of the kids can't find something and comes to me to find it, I impatiently mount a search. And there is always the repetitive happenings: the scramble to find shoes at the last minute; the agony over how someone's hair or clothing looks; the squabbling over who gets what seat at the table or in the car. And as I bang my head against the wall, I ask myself: "Haven't they worked this out yet? Haven't they figured out how to solve this? Why does this happen every time?" There are countless little moments such as these in any given day. But these are all opportunities to stretch myself, to reach for more than mere endurance, and embrace my life.
More and more, I am pushing myself to look for humor and joy in the small things in my life. Let's face it, most of my life is filled with the mundane, not the momentous events; so why not turn those moments into something good? It's not that I am complaining about how dull my life is; I have received many great blessings and have participated in many momentous occasions, it's just that they are far outweighed by the daily ones. But, if I can turn those into opportunities to rejoice, crack a joke or make someone else laugh, wouldn't my life be filled with joy? And wouldn't I spread joy to others, especially to my children? Think of the potential for spreading smiles!
As I have grown older, and maybe a bit wiser, I find myself laughing at these kinds of situations (except maybe the spilled water), seeing how silly they are and how silly of me to get angry or cry. When I help the kids search for lost items as if I were Holmes or Miss Marple, it makes it more fun. And while I haven't found much fun in the squabbling over places at the table or in the car, I have discovered that assigned places prevent arguments. Even a kid who has to wear inappropriate shoes because his have been missing for days makes me giggle now. It's when I am in the moment, I need to challenge myself to choose a better response than the one that comes naturally. It doesn't always happen; I fail many times. But even in the reaching, the trying, I find I am inching closer to the goal, and that encourages me to keep at it. May God help me find joy in the mundane, humor in the irritating; laugh at the little things. And may I remember to share it.
"...choose a better response than the one that comes naturally." This is the key to so much of the Christian life, isn't it? BR
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