TOO Much to DO

We could probably name this one, "Overwhelmed."
Or we could name it, "The Best of Times."

Yeah, right. At first glance, you probably do not see it. Those two titles seem to be completely contradictory, to say the least. I admit that I would have wholeheartedly agreed with your assessment not so very long ago. I could not see what was right in front of my nose.

Then someone pointed me to a video by Gretchen Rubin called, The Years Are Short.

Perhaps we should name this one, "Perspective."

I would also consider the name, "I Loved That Bus Ride!"

Then again, we might agree to a simple, "Thank You, God"

What are the things we miss in our rush around the world? 

What should we be careful to notice before it's no longer available for us to see?

I think I should make a list. But I suspect this task would be discarded just as quickly as the "I should write a book about my kids." assignment that we, as parents, typically proclaim. You know what I mean. We make this promise when a child manages to do something so cute/funny/serious/extraordinary that it not only deserves space in our memory banks but should be available in book form as well.

Please allow me to share a little once-upon-a-time thing from watching my mother as she first entered our 80-year-old two-story house in Faribault, Minnesota, many years ago.

As she walked into the foyer, she spied the original floor grate from a now-removed octopus heating system. Slowly, she walked over to the grate. Her fingers reverently caressed the wall about five feet up from the floor. Allowing them to linger just a few seconds, she turned toward us standing on the grate with her back against the wallpaper. A small tear leaked from closed eyes.

When this scene had played to its conclusion, she explained that this iron-decorated hole in the floor had triggered buried memories. 

Minnesota winters can be cold, of course. It seemed that her mother, my grandmother, had made a habit of standing on their grate to keep warm. After decades of capturing the warmth, a stain had been left on the wallpaper where she had rested her head while rocking back and forth. 

I hope that I can slow down and rethink my busyness. I hope that I can open my eyes and heart to see and feel the precious things around me that I take for granted and skip right over without hesitation or thought. I hope that I can upload seemingly unimportant moments that turn out to be anything but unimportant.

My grandmother died shortly after this story originated. Here I am, some 40 years later, recalling and recording the vivid details of that moment.

As the video points out, this is life itself.

“Look among the nations! Observe!

Be astonished! Wonder!

Because I am doing something in your days—

You would not believe if you were told." Habakkuk 1:5

TOO Much to DO. Thank you, God.