Just Thinking

Every time I think I have it hard or that I'm really busy, I seem to run into someone who totally tops me.

For instance I have a good friend who, because of financial necessity, is going back to school...full time...with four young kids, while she still attends every sporting event, drama rehearsal, not to mention having to hitch rides everywhere because, yes, they only have one car. I think she's absolutely amazing.

I have another friend with more kids than me who is going through a divorce, having to sell the house they renovated together and now will also be going back to school because she is the sole wage-earner for her large brood. I have the greatest respect for her ability to rise like the Phoenix from the ashes. She will be stronger.

I think of another sweet friend of mine every time I start feeling bad for Max about his little weaknesses. She almost lost her first child before he was even born. He has Cerebral Palsy and requires daily therapy and numerous doctors and surgeries over the years. She not only cares for him with the grace and patience of a saint, she does it with a beauty that is beyond compare. And to top it off, she has had two more children since him. She is a genuine hero.

Most of the time I look at women like these with admiration and gratitude. I am grateful for their examples as well as the fact that I don't have their crosses to carry. Other times, I look at them and wonder what in the world I’m doing. What kind of impact am I making, oh me with a Master's Degree who is a stay-at-home mom?

There in lies the rub. Inspiration or reevaluation? Or maybe...both.