A Small Life.

Yes, it's true! About once a month is the fullest amount of blogging I am capable of.... anything more is really just a miracle. So here we are: September is almost over and I'm finally posting something. Why am I incapable of posting more often? Why is there nothing in my life that I feel is so overly exciting to share with the Internet world? Why do I feel there is very little I have to say that is worthwhile or time worthy for you to read? I think the line I'm needing was delivered by Meg Ryan on one of my all-time favorite movies, "You've Got Mail" when she said,


"Sometimes I wonder about my life. I lead a small life. Well, small, but valuable. And sometimes I wonder, do I do it because I like it, or because I haven't been brave? So much of what I see reminds me of something I read in a book, when shouldn't it be the other way around?"

It's true. I lead a small life. I know it might sound a bit depressing, but it's true, I think for most of us. Have I done something really significant in my life that has changes the world? No. Have my discoveries or thoughts been published for the benefit of mankind? No. Will my impact be shared and felt for years to come? .... maybe. But by who? And what kind of an impact am I leaving?


My immediate circle of contact feels very small to me some days. Sometimes I see no one other than my husband and daughter all day. I do the laundry, the dishes, make meals, mop and vacuum, clean the bathroom, and pay the bills. And then I do it again. I think I enjoy reading so much because often it is more exciting than what I'm humming through in my life. So, is that why there's not much to blog about? I do feel we should put our hearts into whatever we do, but dishes.... really?


I'm not disappointed in where my life has led. I'm so lucky and blessed in so many ways. I have a good man who cares for our physical and financial needs, and in this economy I find that truly amazing. He's pretty easy to please and easy to live with. He's a good friend and he's not bad at helping when I need it. He loves me, and says I look the most beautiful to him when I'm pregnant! WOW! I have a beautiful and healthy daughter who loves me and tells me so all thru-out the day. She is bright and funny and really challenges me to be better. And I'm pretty significant, in God's eyes, to have been chosen as her earthly mother. I have the stirrings of another life inside me right now and am so grateful for the miracle of motherhood again granted me. I have many friends who I can talk to about almost anything that I feel the need to share. I have warmth and plenty to eat, I have clothing and a pair of soft slippers, too (I like slippers). I have health, and for the most part, happiness. I live in "the greatest nation on God's green earth"and have more freedoms and privileges granted me than perhaps anywhere else. I have the restored gospel as an intricate part of my life and existence and it fills in my many gaps, questions and doubts about who or why I am and what I'm doing here. So why does all this feel small?


Is it OK to be small? We live in a world where praise is given to "The Strongest", "The Greatest", "The Most Accomplished", "The Prettiest", "The Best", "The Bravest" , "The Most Determined and Ambitious" and even the other extreme: "The Tiniest", "The Most Fragile or Thin", "The Youngest to have completed..." So where does that leave the rest of us that live somewhere in between? Where is the award for "Normal, Average, Adult who is able to accomplish what is needed, with heart and a smile"? Well, TODAY, you get one from me!


Congratulations to all of you who are living good lives and are not deterred by the negative out there! You are doing a great work everyday, even if it seems small and sometimes overlooked. IF you did the laundry, the dishes, made a meal, mopped or vacuumed, if you cleaned the bathroom, or paid a bill today than you did something worthwhile! You are doing important things that are necessary in life. If you read something inspiring or read to a child, if you did something to improve your health, like had an apple instead of a candy bar or took the stairs instead of the elevator, than today you get my PRAISE! Hooray for doing something GOOD for yourself or another! My point: Big and significant differences ALWAYS began with small stuff... "one step at a time". And small stuff is more of life's makeup than most anything big. Perhaps that's what attracts me to clouds so much. They are so often ignored in life, when in reality they are the dynamic effect of a setting or rising sun. But that's a topic for another post. After all, even Albert Einstein did the small stuff! And it looks like he had a bad hair day now and then, too.