"Life is amazing. And then it's awful. And then it's amazing again. And in between the amazing and the awful it's ordinary and mundane and routine. Breathe in the amazing, hold on through the awful, and relax and exhale during the ordinary. That's just living heartbreaking, soul-healing, amazing, awful, ordinary life...." L.R.Knost
There are blessings in the ordinary. Here are mine from the last two weeks.
- The strawberries and raspberries and blueberries and grapes in our garden know when and how to grow. We get the fruits of their ordinary lives. The strawberries will be ripe in a couple of weeks.
- The spin cycle on the washing machine stopped working yesterday. I went online and found a UTube video for troubleshooting and another one for fixing the problem. I stayed online and found the part and ordered it. The part will arrive tomorrow and the washer will get fixed. I didn't have to leave the house or replace the washer.
- One of our sons' business went through a crisis. He called for my counsel. He asked me to go with him to meet with an accountant and a lawyer. He is moving past the crisis. He called to tell me. James is 37 and I am proud of him.
- Another of our sons got his driver's license back after a ten-year loss. Russ is 39 and I rejoiced with him.
- Another of our sons will be working in our area next week. He called to ask if he could stay with us for four nights. We have an extra room. Jason is 44 and I am glad he's choosing to spend his evenings with us.
- Another of our sons has been living with us since he started nursing school two years ago. He graduated in March, passed his Boards in April and got a job in May. He loves taking care of the garden. Peter is 33 and I am glad to have him as a tenant.
- Larisa the Designer Cat gets to be an indoor-outdoor, indoor-outdoor, indoor-outdoor cat here in Washington. She loves her cat door and I love her independence. She still sleeps on the bed, though.
- I met my friend Vicki for coffee yesterday. In the winter I live in a park model trailer in Tucson and she lives on a boat in Mexico. We hadn't seen each other for eight months, but it seemed way less than that. You know how you pick up with some people just where you left off? Vicki and I are like that.
- My nine-year-old neighbor, Jesse, needed to earn five dollars. He weeded under my grape arbor. He did a good job and was thrilled to have the money in his pocket.
- Reentry into my ordinary life is hard sometimes. Today I got frustrated and sent an email to six friends. I know they all understand.
Between the amazing and the awful is the ordinary. It's a good thing.
13 comments:
OK, I love this post and I think I needed it too. Thank you.
Your life seems extraordinary to me. Have a blessed day!
Seems to be a full and happy life. Right focus-right life.
I think you have the right idea here -- gratitude for the fruits of a good life.
Wonderful uplifting post. All those really fine people in your life, you are blessed. :-)
Lots of ups and downs, I think I now enjoy the middle the most. $5 for weeding, that is a bargain.
I love this! With all the turmoil in the world today, what a wonderful way to look at life. I am inspired to write my own list of ordinary blessings. Thank you for sharing this beautiful thought.
I treasure the small everyday things that remind us of our blessings. Beautiful thoughts Linda.
I, too, love this.
Thank you Linda.
Sometimes when we take the time to really look at the ordinary, we realize they were quite extraordinary all along.
I love this post about the ordinary between the extraordinary. I've often commented about that very thing. The house new for only a little while then the toilet needs cleaning and the car is new until you drive it off the lot. The wedding day last 24 hrs then it's the rest of your life when the garbage needs to be dealt with. The birth day lasts 24 hrs then the garden needs weeding. There's a lot of ordinary life in between. I read a book years ago titled Pack Wood, Carry Water (or something to that effect) about these ordinary times that can be extraordinary with mindfulness. I am happy with the ordinary that can be extraordinary some days.
The ups and downs, ordinary and extraordinary are what make life interesting.
Dear Linda, I so enjoyed this posting of yours. It is so true that there is the amazing, the tragic, and the ordinary. And most of us, thank heavens, live in the ordinary most of the time. It is our foundation.
How wonderful that your sons are all doing well and are in touch with you and are eager for your help and suggestions. That is a true blessing in any time! Peace.
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