It Oughta' Be Easy
Basically I never left the house this weekend. There were a couple of trips to the grocery store, of course (I have spent about thirty-thousand dollars in blue drinks through the years) and the kids have taken a liking to barbecued spare ribs- which aren't cheap, but what the hell?
There were loads of laundry to do. The grass needed to be mowed. I put away the patio furniture so it doesn't blow across the lawn during a freak fall storm, and I cleaned the dog crap out of the backyard. I must tell you - Melky and Shadow are fairly regular.
Kathy ran the boys to swim and to get a haircut, did a ton of cleaning, changed the bedsheets, and on and on. The battle over homework should start fairly soon. We had ham and baked potatoes yesterday and pasta with other family members is slated to get underway around 12:30. The office will close soon after. And then, we get ready for another week of work.
And why the detailed recap? Because this is what it is. This is living and all that most middle-class people need or want to do. I must admit as I was mowing the lawn, I considered maybe doing more with my free time. Perhaps I could call a few friends and drink beer and make fun of each other. Maybe I could run to the casino and try and win a few bucks. Why were we wasting time in front of a few bad movies on Friday and Saturday nights?
Yet the moment of the weekend came during Mass - the priest was explaining the role of Paul in the gospel story. "Who's Paul?" Jake whispered. (Glad I'm spending thousands on their Catholic School upbringing). "He's an apostle," I said quickly.
Jake flashed those big brown eyes and smiled - "Paul's a possum!" he whispered to Sam and Matt. I couldn't help but laugh.
Yet it also occurred to me that life can be easy too. It doesn't have to be complicated by shallow desires born of an inability to accept our own limitations. In one of the movies the main characters spent their time in Hawaii. It looked like fun, but I didn't turn to Kathy and mention that it would be nice to lie on a beach for two weeks. It isn't part of the plan right now and I think that is part of the problem with those who are now in over their heads.
There are so many people searching for instant gratification. It all has to happen, right now! I want a house. I want a new car and an in-ground pool. I want to be CEO of a computer company that sells for about 1.4 billion. It ain't going to happen. Matt will someday figure out that he won't make the NBA and his life won't have to stop right there. We don't all have to be on television.
I suppose that it is okay to dream big, but perhaps we are having so much credit difficulty across this land because we have forgotten how to live in the here and now. Joe Six Pack and running the kids to hockey practice sounds great on paper, but a lot of people no longer dream about that being the end of the story. I'm constantly hearing about people leaving their lives, homes and marriages in search for something more.
I finished mowing the lawn and cleaning the garage with a sharp understanding that keeping an eye on the big picture will certainly serve me well. Life can be easy if you let it just come to you.
There were loads of laundry to do. The grass needed to be mowed. I put away the patio furniture so it doesn't blow across the lawn during a freak fall storm, and I cleaned the dog crap out of the backyard. I must tell you - Melky and Shadow are fairly regular.
Kathy ran the boys to swim and to get a haircut, did a ton of cleaning, changed the bedsheets, and on and on. The battle over homework should start fairly soon. We had ham and baked potatoes yesterday and pasta with other family members is slated to get underway around 12:30. The office will close soon after. And then, we get ready for another week of work.
And why the detailed recap? Because this is what it is. This is living and all that most middle-class people need or want to do. I must admit as I was mowing the lawn, I considered maybe doing more with my free time. Perhaps I could call a few friends and drink beer and make fun of each other. Maybe I could run to the casino and try and win a few bucks. Why were we wasting time in front of a few bad movies on Friday and Saturday nights?
Yet the moment of the weekend came during Mass - the priest was explaining the role of Paul in the gospel story. "Who's Paul?" Jake whispered. (Glad I'm spending thousands on their Catholic School upbringing). "He's an apostle," I said quickly.
Jake flashed those big brown eyes and smiled - "Paul's a possum!" he whispered to Sam and Matt. I couldn't help but laugh.
Yet it also occurred to me that life can be easy too. It doesn't have to be complicated by shallow desires born of an inability to accept our own limitations. In one of the movies the main characters spent their time in Hawaii. It looked like fun, but I didn't turn to Kathy and mention that it would be nice to lie on a beach for two weeks. It isn't part of the plan right now and I think that is part of the problem with those who are now in over their heads.
There are so many people searching for instant gratification. It all has to happen, right now! I want a house. I want a new car and an in-ground pool. I want to be CEO of a computer company that sells for about 1.4 billion. It ain't going to happen. Matt will someday figure out that he won't make the NBA and his life won't have to stop right there. We don't all have to be on television.
I suppose that it is okay to dream big, but perhaps we are having so much credit difficulty across this land because we have forgotten how to live in the here and now. Joe Six Pack and running the kids to hockey practice sounds great on paper, but a lot of people no longer dream about that being the end of the story. I'm constantly hearing about people leaving their lives, homes and marriages in search for something more.
I finished mowing the lawn and cleaning the garage with a sharp understanding that keeping an eye on the big picture will certainly serve me well. Life can be easy if you let it just come to you.
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