Doing the Gigantic

Today was one of those days when I had the rare thought, "I am Superwoman." You know, one of those days when you just seem to be able to get the million things done that were on your short list and a few on the long one as well.

Here's the day in a nutshell. With Nelson’s help, I got everyone everything they needed this morning to make it to school and had a little time left over to spend with him before he left for work. I gathered all that I needed for my errands and ran Max to school. From there I popped into my dad's office to cut the shower invitations I drew and Nelson printed...all 100 of them (and yes, it's at my house). From there, I ran to Wal-Mart to get ingredients to make the requested banana pudding for Dawson's birthday party Saturday along with some household needs to spruce a few things up for that shower. When I got back home, I unloaded everything and got a jump on dinner preparation before picking Max up. I also got the scoop on my duties as fundraiser for the 5K run at the kids' school, and made four phone calls. By then, it was time to pick up the other kids, get them snacks, help them study and referee their disagreements all while preparing a dinner that was much more effort than I remembered. In the middle of all that I found out that one son forgot the book he needed to study for his test and Mackenzie got invited to an impromptu birthday party that we had to find a gift for and then wrap it. I fed 11 people dinner and addressed all those invitations. We had a major discussion/furniture moving session with dinner guests about what to do with our cavernous family room. And finally, I got kids to bed and did the after dinner clean-up.

Somewhere in the middle of all that I had the rational thought that it is simply amazing what we moms do in a day without really "accomplishing" much at all. Besides food on the table and invitations ready to be delivered, I have nothing much to show for all the frenzy.

Nelson walked in at precisely the moment I discovered that the dining room table that the boys had set, was not up to par. The room itself also looked slightly like a tornado hit it while the table was being set. He generously came in the door, saw my face, pitched in and poured me some wine.

When I finally took a breath and thanked him, I asked him how his day was. "Well...kind of good," he noted tentatively.

"What does that mean?"

"Well I had a busy day where I did a lot but didn't really get anything accomplished."

Although I didn't feel that way tonight, I totally related to him because that is the way I feel most days. I mean, can you count something as an accomplishment if you need to do it again as soon as you finish (laundry and cleaning toilets in a house full of little boys, for example)? Yes, this is how I feel most days.

Today however I still had this quote at the forefront of my mind. It was also on my mind yesterday as Max and I spent some time pulling weeds and he asked me why we need to get rid of the weeds and I gave him this wonderful analogy about how weeds can choke the plants causing them to die kind of like the devil tries to do to us (of course I was much more poetic). It was just a few minutes but I felt it. I seized my opportunity to teach Max about the mysteries of the universe and it felt very important and worthwhile and it was all while we were knee deep in dirt.

A day like today is exhausting. It can make me feel at once a superhero and an insignificant speck. However, when my perspective is on the mark, I can see that I am at work building my family, my friendships and my life.

Today, in the million little things, I did the gigantic and world is a better place because of it.