Room for Improvement

Laundry! I just did FIVE loads of laundry, and the baskets are overflowing again with MORE laundry. Sometimes I think the never ending chore of doing laundry is the real curse resulting from The Fall. I mean really…childbirth pains? That’s what epidurals are for! Before Eve ate that apple, she and Adam were prancing around the garden in their birthday suits and all the happier for it. Now, we have to shop for, try on, pay for, wear, and wash all these clothes! Not only that, but we have to worry about whether they’re in style, the right color, fit right, or if they’ll still fit us after the holidays! And let’s not forget worrying about whether or not they are from the right store!

My rant over laundry reminded me of a conversation I had with a friend a couple of years back: it’s all about perspective. As a full time working mom, she “enjoyed” doing laundry. Really? Enjoyed? She got my attention! She told me she used that time to be reminded of the little joys in her life. She loved holding up the size 2T jeans, amazed at how much her son had grown while, at the same time, marveling that any human being could fit into pants so tiny. Sometimes it reminded her to pray for her children, her family or spouse. And others it conjured up memories of a time she enjoyed with her son when he was in those very jeans, or of the good friend who gave her the jeans as a gift.

I try to carry that attitude with me when I am stuck in what I feel is the mundane, one of finding simple pleasures. Really, this is a posture of worship. But it’s easy to slip into the habit of taking things for granted. Until something catastrophic happens. Something like an earthquake strong enough to destroy an entire city, leaving multitudes of people without basic necessities. It snaps me out of “it”, auto pilot, me centeredness. It reminds me to ask the questions that can get pushed aside in the day to day busyness of life. Am I doing enough to help others? Are my children being exposed to enough opportunities to serve others? Am I giving thanks in ALL things to the One from whom ALL blessings flow? As my children’s swim coach would say, “The largest room in the world is room for improvement.” He also says that the first step in improving is recognizing that it's needed. Who exactly is he coaching anyway?