--anne
Wow...I feel famous, I'm on Bloom!Recently, I taught a lesson to the Young Women at church. The lesson was titled 'Our Purpose in Life'. I shared with the girls an experience I had the two days before:
Friday afternoon my husband left town to go camping with the scouts. I had a fun weekend planned with my three children which included popcorn, candy, movies and a sleep-over in the living room.
But.
Not long after my husband left I discovered that my bathroom was flooding; the toilet had a leak!
Previously, I promised my husband I would do his farm chores. So the next morning off I went. It happened to be snowing as I drove to the farm across town and I thought I could get to the barn despite all the mud. I was wrong, I got my van stuck in the mud! The chores still needed to be done, though. I could easily see the van from the barn, so I left my kids in the warmth and fed the animals. I could hear my kids screaming as I opened the door to the van. The first thing I saw was blood! My sons had gotten in a fight and my older son scratched my younger son's face (he had just gotten stitches out of his forehead earlier that week and his fresh scab was scratched off as well).
I closed the door and tears filled my eyes. I thought to myself: is this why I'm here, to deal with things like leaky toilets, muddy cars and messy faces? After I whimpered a quick prayer, I knew that that is ABSOLUTELY why I'm here!
Because of these unfortunate events, I was able to become a better mother. That weekend, I was able to be an example to my children as I stayed calm and found a way to stop my toilet from leaking and get help for my stuck van. I had the opportunity to teach my children as we talked about alternatives to fighting and hitting. I was able to nurture my children as I cleaned my son's wounds.
I know what my purpose is. It's to be a good mother!
9 comments:
What a beautiful post, Kari. You're absolutely one of the best mothers I know.
What a wonderful thing to share with other mothers (and mothers-to-be, like myself). We all have days that are simply overwhelming, that seem like they're too much for us to handle, but being confident that motherhood is your life's purpose can make all the difference in the world!
Kari you make me very proud. i know it isn't by my example, but i hope i set some kind of example to my kids...you totally rock
Thank you for your thoughts! It's so refreshing to hear a mother who actually "gets it" and isn't out seeking for "fulfillment" in all the wrong places. You've found that your treasure is right in front of you! Way to go!
You wrote exactly what is deep in my heart. I KNOW what my purpose is, and that is to be the very best mother to my sweet children that I possibly can. Especially on the hard days. What a gift they are. I just lost my 3rd pregnancy half way through and I have never felt the importance of what we are doing more than I have now. I knew, but now I KNOW. Hug your babies a little tighter, speak softer, love them with all you've got. Thank you for this today.
Thank you for sharing this simple story. Simple, but honest. I often find myself in moments like that and don't realize that I could be using it to provide an example to my children, but instead give in to the overwhelming frustration of it all. Thank you for this is a reminder to be to be better.
Oh how lovely :)
BEAUTIFUL, KARI!
Thank you for being a wonderful example of a person who can a take a minute to step away from trying circumstances and get a grasp of what is truly important!
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