Violet Voices

The Small Things In Life

Note From Meredith: It’s always so much fun to welcome a new Voice to Violet Voices. Today, it’s my pleasure to introduce Kathleen to you. Please leave lots of comments and make her feel welcome!

It is the small things in life that are so important. This simple statement has a lot of truth in it. I tend to be more appreciative of the small things; maybe because I have faced death but it really irritates those who don’t understand. They feel you are being lazy, just don’t care and it is hard to explain to them that your priorities about what is truly important are a little different.

I like to enjoy things, the small things that seem insignificant to others. I like sunrises and sunsets, the sound of the ocean, the wind through the trees. I like to sit and listen to my children play and laugh… I like to listen to music.

I enjoy crocheting an afghan, creating a simple craft or baking cookies and seeing the pleasure on the face of the recipient of my simple gift.

I don’t care if the house is not perfect…maybe that is not right.

I have seen spotless houses and miserable people living in them.

It is more important for me to spend the day watching the geese fly over the house, listening to my children laugh, dancing to music, writing a letter, etc.

I remember the doctor telling me how sick I was and that I needed to fight. I remember telling him to not tell my family, but if I did die to tell them I love them and to enjoy the small things in life, like watching a calf being born, listening to the wind or enjoying a fishing trip. He had tears in his eyes and promised to do his best for me. I knew during a dream I had on the operating table that I wouldn’t die.

I knew that I had a life to experience and cherish. Sometimes I need to be reminded. Have you ever wanted to nuzzle your nose in a wolf’s coat? Or lay on the beach and be buried up to your neck in sand… and watch the seagulls fly over head. Have you ever lay on a beach and watched the little crabs crawl side-ways all over the place? Or driven through the mountains and found your self awe-struck by the smells and the scenic beauty? These are things that I want my children and grandchildren to cherish and enjoy.

Have you ever been to a ghetto and saw the faces of a child as you sang them a song… Or went to a simple church service and treasured the experience of seeing someone deep in prayer? Or traveled through the villages of Mexico and dreamed of having your whole family with you…? Or had the opportunity to work in an orphanage and play with the children, share some love… These are things I have done or would like to do. These are things I hope my children experience with love shining through them.

The dishes in my house wait to be cleaned more than they should.

I am not the best of housewives. I use to have a spotless house. I use to scrub the floor at least three times a week, make the beds every morning and have

meals at the same time every day. Maybe I didn’t do these things in the right spirit, as I felt bound by the ritual. I don’t know when I stopped or if I stopped for the right or wrong reasons. I hardly know how to start again. It is hard for me to stop and clean when my children say, “Mom will you watch me do this?” or “Mom, we need to talk.” That is a favorite saying of my youngest Joey.

Sometimes I might hear an owl or woodpecker and feel the urge to find out where it is. Or see a doe playing with her fawn. I love to walk through forest and listening to the sounds, smell the evergreens and watch the squirrels gather food for the winter. I’d rather have my husband by my side during these times but I also enjoy the walk alone.

I knew when I had my children I wanted to enjoy them… read, sing, teach, play, learn, explore, travel… I wanted a partner in life who wanted to spend a lot of time with our children and me, enjoy the small things in life.

I think I might use the china tonight for spaghetti- and do the dishes afterward.

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Written By: Kathleen Marie
Posted under: On Being a Parent, Women's Voices .  Email This Post