For Messy Lives

The fish died today. Savannah took it upon herself to change the water and somehow he was dropped in the sink. After she placed him back in water, he fought it for a few hours. We cheered him on. Then, he died.

A tablet was dropped and does not work. I am behind for the week in school. I had to change supper plans at the last minute because there was not enough time. I keep walking around the pile of laundry and suitcases waiting to be unpacked since a week and a half ago.

I start a schedule one week, I forget it the next. I don't always pay my kids for their extra chores... and they often forget to do them. Well thought out ideas are too difficult to maintain. I should fix my tire, but who has time?

And I think, "When will survival mode end?"

When will it get easier?  When will the kids stop fighting? When will I be able to put together more than one thought in a row? When can we all just get along?

Messes get in the way of our plans. They make life difficult. We hate them.

As I get further along in life, this is what I notice:

Life is a mess- that is the normal state of life. Most everything is messy; relationships, circumstances, kitchen sinks, bank accounts, and politics. A lot of people think they have the perfect solution, only to end up making it messier.

So what if we stopped seeing messes as a roadblock to our perfect plan but acknowledging that they are a very normal, everyday occurrence, and what if we didn't mind the messes so much but really valued- celebrated- the times when something goes right?

Maybe then we would stop seeing the messes altogether.

His name was King Lewis Pip Nebuchadnezzar  because no one could agree on a name. We sang "Amazing Grace" with some intense vibratos, Savannah read a poem about his fish life- you know, eating, sleeping, and swimming, and we made a procession into the bathroom, kicking the dirty underwear aside as we marched. Brooke did the ceremonial toilet flush as we said our last good-byes.

We had a good laugh.

Maybe, when we choose contentment, God shows His goodness right through the messes. I tend to think that is exactly the way He likes it.

Accept no shame for the mess. Be content, but strive for goodness and try to have a grand
time while you're at it. Really, it's okay to have fun in the mess. The kids will thank you for it someday.