Great affairs do not disturb us so much as a great number of little ones; therefore, receive these also with calmness, and try to attend to them in order, one after another, without perturbation. Thus, you will gain great merit by them. -- St. Francis de SalesI found this very timely quote over at Faith & Family Live. While blogger Kelly Dolin was discussing life with toddlers, it's no less true when you've got teens and grade-schoolers in the house.
After I found myself defeated, again and again, by the "little things" this week, I need the inspiration. It's not like there have been any major crises. But it's been a tough week, that has included:
- Little Brother running a fever of 103.7, complete with a spell of vomiting.
- An extended-family medical issue that culminated in a 2-day houseguest.
- A bunch of teenagers who don't follow the "say hello to the adult at home" rule when they show up to swim. They also don't bring their own towels, and they empty my porch refrigerator of all beverages. And they leave their mess behind.
- A teenager (yet to be identified) who thinks it's funny to spell out one of George Carlin's "7 words you can't say on TV" with the ABC magnets we keep near the porch refrigerator. (Usually those are used to wish a friend a happy birthday.)
- Adventure Boy vomiting on the pool deck (but fortunately not in the pool itself.)
It hasn't been pretty, and I haven't handled all of this well. And some of it's not over yet. Now we have to play hardball with a bunch of 15-year-olds until someone apologizes for his use of filthy vocabulary and lack of respect of us and our daughter.
I think I'm going to have to pull out my Francis de Sales book and see if he has any more advice for people like me, who can handle big things pretty well, but let the little things pile up and pile up and pile up until they lose it completely. It's going to be a long summer, and I'll need all the grace I can get.
7 comments:
Ooooh bad week. I'm sorry. Sounds like the red light needs to go up for a couple days (or weeks). Wish I could stop over with a bottle of wine to share. Hope the weekend gets better!
I am SO THERE with you right now. The little things are driving me around the bend.
And I agree with Barbara - put the red light out for pool guests!
Oh, the red light is UP for teenagers under 17 until the potty-mouth issue is resolved. Younger visitors haven't been a problem.
Wish I had a red light for Adventure Boy's grandmother, who--after I called and said I sent him home because he vomited and he couldn't play at my house or pool that day--let him back out to knock on my door 2 hours later. Grrrr...
My oldest is only 13 1/2--can he still come? He can be rowdy as far as teens go...but (to my knowledge) he leaves Carlin's words alone!
You ARE being tested, Barb. Be strong; be prayerful; have a rum & coke. :)
That's too bad about the kids. Hardball is definitely needed. Good luck.
Your house, your rules. You break the rule, you're out. So glad that I'm not the only one who believes that rules are meant to be followed and there are consequences one doesn't. Cheers to you for sticking to your guns.
Hi Barb, I'm sorry to hear about this trying week you've had. I do like the quote from St. Francis de Sales because there is such truth in it. The little things can pile up and pile up and then it all feels overwhelming. I hope your weekend is finishing better! God bless.
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