Perspective

Gypsy Mama Five Minute Friday Exercise (click here for her blog and an explanation)

Start.
This morning I awoke. Unable to go back to sleep, I hastily tip toe through each room to make sure all are still snuggled down and as I make my way to the kitchen I glance outside. The grey of dawn is receding and the brighter light of the day is crawling up the massive trunk of tree across the street from us. I make my coffee, grab a snack and open my computer.

The first two things I read bring me up hard and give me a good dose of perspective.

One is a blog post from Sally Clarkson's blog I Take Joy and then after reading her blog post I quickly searched for Ann Voskamp's post about a mother duck plucking her feathers to line her nest.

Perspective.

Sometimes being a Momma I lose sight of why I am doing what I am doing. It seems one day just spills into the next and the only thing that marks the time is what we have to get done and when. I am the type of person that needs a schedule because I tend to drift or flit - depending on how much energy I wake up with. Sometimes I slow plop like molasses on a cold morning, other times I dart and flit around like a fruit fly on steroids. So having a basic schedule grounds me. Drives our days forward with a destination in mind. However I have noticed that if I am not careful I forget to give my very best to my most loved. I will spend myself, my very best, on things that are inanimate. Like the toilet that was scrubbed or the boxes I moved, unpacked and sorted through. These two blog posts reminded me that sacrifice is the call of motherhood, not schedules or routines or a check list. And while absolutely getting those things cleaned and put away ultimately serve my family, does it serve their hearts the same way as when I stop and cuddle on the couch and read a chapter from Danny, the Champion of the World (Roald Dahl)?

Stop.