Gaining Much

Some evenings are a little more eventful than others. Last night was one of those. I had a million things cross my mind that I should be doing.

I needed to finish peeling apples to freeze. I needed to fold laundry. I had a stack of papers to grade. I had a pile of homework to do.

I did none of it.

Instead, I spent time drawing on the driveway making chalk figures with my boys. We cleaned an area around the tree where they like to play in the front yard. They had a bit of a water hose fight. And we even rode the four wheeler for a few minutes.

Through it all, though, the boys had some listening issues. Some days are like that ... no one wants to do what is requested of them on the first request.

I’ll admit that it is frustrating for a parent when doing all that one can, to have children who don’t realize the benefits and blessings so abundant to them. It becomes a task of mine to make sure they realize and are grateful, not just expectant of luxuries.

As I tucked them into bed that night, we prayed. Normally, I say the words. This night, I asked them to do it.

Creed started. He asked God to heal ailments on him and friends. He thanked God for people he loved. And then, the best part was that he asked God to help him be better. And when I told him he did a wonderful job, he looked at me and said, "I know I wasn’t very good today. I’m sorry. I’ll be better tomorrow."

I was almost at a lost for words. Maybe something is sinking in. Maybe my children are understanding what I try to teach them day after day. Either way, I felt blessed.

Heath also said his prayers that night. Just to know that at age four and six my boys understand they can have a conversation with God is very pleasing.

I finished that evening in what some would view as behind. My laundry, papers and homework still loomed. But, in reality, I had gained so much during the day.

TNT Dynamite

Todd agreed to share his good times and bad times with me. He agreed to stay with me forever, and to cherish and love me at all times — even in those moments when I can be a bit irritating. On Saturday, he gave me his name.

I guess this makes it official. We celebrated the day with a few family and friends.

He’s said for a long time that he couldn’t wait until we could be “TNT, dynamite.” For that reason, as soon as the preacher made the announcement (and minus a few technical difficulties), the AC/DC song rang out.

Other songs played that day, however, are a bit more symbolic of our relationship.

I walked in to the tune by the Zac Brown Band “Whatever It Is.”

With lyrics such as: “She got a gentle way that puts me at ease.”

The song explains that whatever it is, he can’t live without it. For years I wondered if anyone could find anything special about me. Todd does. He sees it every day and he reminds me of such.

“She’s got whatever it is. It blows me away. She’s everything I wanted to say to a woman but couldn’t find the words to say. She’s got whatever it is. I don’t know what to do because every time I try and tell her how I feel it comes out ‘I love you.’”

He sings the song to me all the time, noting that something changed when I walked into his life. “People ask me what it is, I tell them I don’t know. Just something about the woman makes my heart go haywire. She’s gonna be my wife.”

A dear friend also lent his guitar abilities and musical talent to the ceremony, performing “Making Memories of Us” as it began. It’s always been a favorite of mine as it talks about being a person of his/her word. And it shares how the sweetest part of love is making memories together.

After the vows, and during the greetings of the receiving line, we couldn’t resist and had to add in the Montgomery Gentry tune “What Do You Think About That?” Why? Just because our relationship seems to have been such a source of discussion for so many people. Funny. Why do others even care? It’s not them. But, in honor of all those times others have made our business their own, we tipped our hats with these words:

“Some people care about what other people think, worry about what they say. Let a little gossip coming from a loose lip ruin a perfect day, say, blah, blah, blah, just a jacking their jaws, got a let it roll off-a my back. I don’t give a dern what other people think. What do ya think about that?”

Of course, leaving it on that note wouldn’t be appropriate. I shared my favorite song to illustrate our relationship together.

“I wanna thank you for the love that you give me, and the sun that you put in my sky. You don’t know how much you’ve lifted me up, but I feel so alive that I could fly. There’s no way I could’ve made it this far without you.

You came to me just when I needed someone to believe that I could make it through. And you gave me back the love I had, the faith I’d lost, the life I knew.”

And, finally, we played a bit of “God’s Been Good To Me.”

And, He certainly has.

A Carefree Evening

I lost a shoe the other night. It was one of those moments that completely confused me.

Four of my friends decided to carpool with me to a celebration event. Three piled in the back seat, Todd took on the chauffeur role, and the other climbed in beside me in the front seat. Five women, one truck. Todd is a brave man.

I took my flip flops off when I got into the truck. When we arrived at our destination, I found one and put it back on. The other was gone. Three of us searched the truck. No shoe!

My only thought was that it had fallen out at our meeting spot. Hours passed, and as we left in the brisk night air, another of my friends walked barefoot with me to the truck. Not only was it a nice gesture, but she was just too tired at this point to actually walk in her heels.

Actually, they all agreed to walk with just one shoe when we arrived — just to make me feel more comfortable. That’s a bunch of good friends, sacrificing to make others feel okay with their problems.

We had a girl’s night out. Todd only dropped us off and picked us up. It was so needed. I can’t remember the last time I just decided to forget about all of the things that are waiting for me to do. It seems as soon as one task is complete that another is looming. Sometimes it feels as if it is yelling, “What about me .... did you forget about me ... when will you finish?”

It’s like laundry. Almost as soon as you take the empty baskets back after spending hours washing, drying, folding, and putting away; dirty clothes are already waiting.

It’s like dishes. As soon as you finish and walk away, you can almost certainly return to a few dirty ones in the sink (put there by no one knows who) or you’ll find some left in another room (again, by no one knows who).

Dusting is another one of those areas. I think dust just floats in the air and lands back in the same spot as soon as the rag leaves it.

But it isn’t just household chores. Work, school — it’s all the same. Finish a project, another is waiting. Whatever happened to a break!

Usually, I only experience these moments of not worrying about things when barreling though mud holes in the woods on a four-wheeler. This was a completely different experience (and produced much less dirty clothes).

About 15 of my girlfriends gathered at a friend’s house. We talked. We laughed. We played games. We had fun. Even in a shoeless state, it didn’t matter. Thank God for those moments of good friends and good times.

As for the shoe, I found it when we returned to their vehicles. As my friends climbed back into their cars for drives home, I found my flip flop upside down on the blacktop — just where it fell out of the truck. No harm done. I had to laugh.

Maybe tonight when I finish that pile of dishes I left in the sink, and begin to fold all of the laundry that I washed and dried (but never finished), I’ll just wear one shoe in memory of a carefree evening.