Monday, January 10, 2011

Naked Truth

Maaike and I were both “on edge” tonight…we were both feeling a bit off physically and were both tired. Mary Jane, on the other hand, was feeling quite fine and was wide awake and full of energy, surprise, surprise…

As I look back over the day what stands out to me most is that while Maaike and I were grumpily doing dishes and making dinner Mary Jane was standing right there with us, buck naked and just wanting to be a part of what mommy and daddy were doing. She had a frying pan full of her wooden fruits and vegetables and would periodically break out in an announcement about the recipe she was following and how the red stuff was in there to give the cookies flavor. But I didn’t really see her and her joy. I was too busy being pissed off that there were so many damn dishes and that the stinking bottle brush was too big for the bottles and so I would get a face full of dish water spray with every bottle.

And then there is Rebekah who, somehow, sat peacefully in her little bouncy kicking her legs and cooing and gooing…even though she was surrounded by a couple of edgy parents and a loud and excited older sister.

Again, Mary Jane and Rebekah are my teachers – what is really important in life? It was all right there! All within seven feet of me: my wife and both my daughters. And, as if that weren’t enough, we are here in our own home with food and clothes and toys and…so much to be grateful for and so much to celebrate. How often do I forget to celebrate the amazing gifts in my life? When was the last time I stopped and celebrated life? Period. Just the fact that I am alive, that I get to take this breath.

The truth is that my life is way too precious to waste on being grumpy and pissed off about the stupid dishes. I want to spend more time standing naked in the kitchen cooking wooden fruits and vegetables with red stuff so that the cookies get flavored!

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