Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Invisible Mother

This is from an email I received. I like how it interprets motherhood. So I thought I would share. Forgive it's length, but I think it's worth the read.


The Invisible Mother......It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?' Obviously, not. No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? & Can you open this? Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30, please.'

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England . Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I brought you this.' It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe . I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: 'To Charlotte , with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.'

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything. A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.' And the workman replied, 'Because God sees.'I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become.'

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride. I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my daughter to tell the friend she's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want her to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to her friend , to add, 'you're gonna love it there.'

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot see if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women. Great Job, MOM!

Share this with all the Invisible Moms you know...I just did. Hope this encourages you when the going gets tough as it sometimes does. We never know what our finished products will turn out to be because of our perseverance.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

First Snow


We got our first snow of the season! Annabelle was so excited that she went out to pack a snowball. Mojo loved playing in the snow. We only ended up with a wet dusting but it was enough for some smiles.
Of course, Scott had homework so didn't get in on the fun outside.
Mojo, resting at the bottom of the stairs waiting for the kids to come down for dinner. He's such a good dog.

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Scariest Costume


Okay, so he doesn't look so creepy here. But all night he acted creepy. Mark stared a my poor cousin Theresa all night and would say nothing. He also did this head tilt thing ... I shiver (not in a good way) just remembering it.


This is in front of Paula's house. Yes, it was decorated to the hill for Halloween! It made the party that much more fun!

Monday, November 3, 2008

Halloween II


Saturday night was party night for the kids and adults. Grandma took all 5 younger grandkids for a party and sleepover! While all us adults went to my sister Paula's home for a great Halloween party. Grandma had many fun activities planned for the kids. They had a blast!

Mark went to the party as Michael Myer from the movie Halloween. I don't have a picture at this time, (Paula please send!) but he won for scariest costume! Pretty cool, he got a trophy too! I was Lori from the movie. Not so scary, although the 70's hair and make-up did frighten me. There were a lot of great costumes and a lot of cleaver people.

Halloween


Halloween was fun this year. Friday night was Trick or Treating for the kids and Saturday night was Halloween parties! It was a whole weekend of sugar! Annabelle went as a Pirate and Scott as Darth Vader! The kids really got into character too. Thank goodness the weather was beautiful.

Scott and Annabelle both have gag reflexes when carving real pumpkins. So they carved artificial ones this year. They turned out really cool. We place flashlights inside to light them up.
Mojo was Rin Tin Tin!