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| Allowing Your Children to Disrupt Your Routine by Mary DeMent I’m on a roll this morning. My thoughts are flowing; my pencil is moving, recording thoughts as they come. Article ideas, weekly menu, shopping and to-do lists. My hand can’t seem to move fast enough. But in just one minute, any minute, all concentration will cease. All clarity of thought will vanish. In just one minute, my children will begin making the journey from their bedrooms to my fleeting world of solitude on the couch. One by one, they will come to greet me with hugs, kisses, sleepy good mornings and a chance to steal some of my coffee. (I really need to drink it black!) My children are disruptive. Come to think of it, they have disrupted my entire life! Once I was a single, then married, carefree woman with no children. Life was good! I enjoyed coffee (that I didn’t have to share) with my husband, a trip to Einstein Bagels for a lightly toasted blueberry bagel w/Wildberry Shmear and then off to garage sale on a peaceful Saturday morning. Even the weekdays were stress-free. Quiet breakfast and commute to work, then home again to enjoy a romantic dinner for two and maybe even an occasional night out. The truth is, God knew that my life needed a little disruption. Apparently, He felt I needed it more than most. He blessed me with four darling disruptions! And I am insanely in love with each of them! In a recent premarriage counseling session, I told a couple that they must be willing to “die” to themselves, to their own wishes and personal desires, in order for their marriage to succeed. My words were harsh, but true. Still, it remains their choice. In parenting, there is no choice. Oh, I guess you could walk away from parenthood. A glance at the headlines shows some do choose that option. But for most of us, we remain, choosing to live our lives, spend our days bringing up the next generation. That means dying to self, sharing your ice cream (the one you waited for all day), sharing your time (when you just want to relax), sharing yourself when there is very little left to go around. Sharing, sharing, sharing equals dying, dying, dying. One seasoned father called parenting “the ultimate in self-sacrifice.” The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition defines disrupt as follows:
Not sure about life at your house, but ours could, at times, certainly be described as “confusion and disorder!” And the “the progress and procedures” of my life were certainly “interrupted” when God gave me children. But I am so thankful. While I do not consider myself “ruptured” (excluding the whole labor and delivery part), there was and is a “breaking” process. Children humble you. They require attention, a lot of attention. Attention that you once lavished upon yourself, your needs, is now “impeded” and redirected toward your children. You grow up, fast. You remember your mother’s words. You hear them coming out of your mouth .You cringe. Comedian Phyllis Diller once said, “It would seem that something which means poverty, disorder and violence every single day should be avoided entirely, but the desire to beget children is a natural urge.” Children, though, are far more than disruptions, impeding our plans for a life of peace and harmony. Our children, like adversity, define us, they mold us, they strengthen us, and they perfect us into the parents, the people God desires us to be. In the Bible, King Solomon said, “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another” (Proverbs 27:17, NIV). Few would argue that children sharpen us daily! Solomon’s wisdom continues: “Don’t you see that children are God’s best gift? The fruit of the womb his generous legacy? Like a warrior’s fistful of arrows are the children of a vigorous youth. Oh, how blessed are you parents, with your quivers full of children! Your enemies don’t stand a chance against you; you’ll sweep them right off your doorstep” (Psalm 127:3-5, The Message). If you find that your children are a constant disruption, consider this: Maybe God wants to interrupt or disrupt your life a bit. Why fight it? Instead, drop everything. Leave the laundry, dinner and the phone, whatever is calling you away from those beautiful “gifts” that God has given you. Believe me, whatever it is will wait. Take some time; steal some time to spend with your children. Fifteen minutes, 30, you decide. Throw a Frisbee, take a walk, read a story, listen to their music. Allow your little (or big) ones to disrupt, interrupt or impede your life. Enter into their world, totally. They are your “fistful of arrows” against the cares of this world. Remember, with them in your quiver, your enemies don’t stand a chance! Mary DeMent is a freelance writer and stay-at-home mom. She lives in Orlando, Florida, with her husband, Bill, and their four young children. She holds a master’s degree in social work and writes devotionals and articles for God’s Word for Today, LIVE! and the Faith Café. How have your children positively disrupted your life?| Top | Share Your Thoughts... Wednesday, August 06, 2008 07:05:08 PM
katydidmom wrote... This is such a good reminder to embrace the "interruptions"!!!!!!! Thank you!!!!!!! |
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