Stuff that Matters

WARSAW, INDIANA - I have known a few people who judge others with a certain criteria in mind. How clean your house is, how large your house is, what kind of stuff you have in your house, etc. In the past, those judgments would have caused me undue stress and concern; oh gosh, I’m not stacking up. I’m sorry, I’ll get cracking on that!

Not.any.more. I looked around this weekend and realized that all the things that make people like that turn up their noses are exactly the kind of things that give me joy. And I'd like to tell you why, as briefly and dispassionately as I can muster.

• THE SOFA WITH THE BIG TEAR AND RED SMUDGES. It’s got a tear that I can’t fix, but the pillow covers that up. It means that my family and I have a comfy place to sit and look out at my backyard. The red smudge is from someone’s play-dough. The stain won’t come out, but every time I see it, it makes me think of my little ones. So the sofa is staying.



• DISHES IN THE SINK.
Yep, I know. The perfect woman wouldn’t have them there. Luckily, I’m not her, and more to the point I’VE NEVER MET HER. This means that I decided to go outside with my kids and talk to them in the warm sunshine while they played. We all talked and laughed and were totally silly for hours and hours. It was such a full day, we all went to bed tired but happy. Dishes don’t matter, but my life does. I’ll get them in the morning. So the dishes are staying.


• STAINED CARPET. It looks like a rainbow exploded by the fireplace. And there is a trail of coffee that I can’t get out no matter how hard I try. This means that my children had a playdate with play-dough (seems to be all over my house, right? ) on a cold winter day right in front of a warm fire. They were happy and quiet and no one with four children and a coffee-drinking husband should have white carpet anyway. Yes, the carpet is clean, it’s just not the color of its origin. I’ll replace it when I can afford it. So, for now, the carpet is staying.


• OLD BAKEWARE. It’s not really old, it just looks that way. Every chance I get, I bake with my kids. If I’m home, that means every weekend. So you might not think that cookie sheet is pristine and satisfactory, but what that means is that we’ve made more chocolate chip and sugar cookies than can be counted. More importantly, we give some away every time. We share our what we have, that’s a rule my mama taught me, and now I’ve been able to pass to my children. So the bakeware is staying.


• LAUNDRY. It’s never-ending. But what that means is, of course, that we have more than enough. We are blessed far more than most of the world with such things, and we so often forget that. It means that while I know I have chores to do, I have better things to occupy my time. Please refer to ‘dishes in the sink’ for more details. So the laundry is staying.

I’m not perfect, but I don’t think I am going to apologize for that. Instead, I think I will try to squeak out as many wonderful, joyful memories as I can with the lifetime I’ve been given. So the happiness is staying.