“The sleep of a laboring man is sweet, Whether he eats little or much; But the abundance of the rich will not permit him to sleep.”
My Dearest MacKynzie,
When your brother was little, I remember telling myself 'it is going to be so much better when he is out of diapers'. I imagined life without diapers as a wonderful world filled with poopless fingernails, extra money and more time to play. What was I thinking? The reality of having a boy is that I spend way more time cleaning sheets and wiping pee off the toilet...and the wall....and the floor. Those of you that are moms with boys know what I'm talking about. One morning I looked out of my bedroom window. Colt was there with his britches to his knees, making golden rainbows in the yard while all of the moms and kids were walking to the bus stop in our new neighborhood. I just waived awkwardly out the window 'hi, we are the Bryants.. nice to meet you'. Welcome to potty trained life with a boy!
'We've all heard the saying 'Life is a journey, not a destination'. I love this because sometimes we get so wrapped up in the future that we forget to enjoy the present. We tell ourselves 'I'll be happy when ___' or 'If only I had ___'. When we finally get what we thought would be so awesome life is amazing for a short time. It doesn't take long and the excitement wears off. We are off to wanting the next thing that will make us happy. The worst part is that I skipped right through the whole experience of diapers because my mind was dreaming about clean fingernails. I missed giggles and smiles and sitting still for more than 10 seconds. On to the next journey. This happens in so many areas of our lives.
Here are some other common examples.
With our health: 'I heard of this new diet where you eat nothing but butter for 10 days and lose 50 pounds' (just a joke, please don't try that). 'If I lose 50 pounds in 10 days, then I will be happy.'
With our job: 'If I only made $200 more a month then we could buy that one thing I've always wanted and then I will be happy'.
With a new phone: 'My phone is dumb and doesn't have face recognition which is a must have because it will save me half a second every time I open my phone... that adds up. When I have a new cell phone, then I will be happy'. Of corse right after you purchase it, they launch a new version that cleans your house, does laundry and babysits your kids.
Here is the killer one. It's so toxic, I'm going to write a whole letter about this one. We all do it. Compare. 'If I only had a family like hers.. or a house like hers.. or a car like hers.. or hair like hers.. or a butt like hers... or clothes like hers, THEN I'll be happy.
Guess what. You have amazing things in your life NOW that you once thought would make you happy... so enjoy them and be happy! Stop letting your life get away from you and enjoy every sloppy, fun, angry, broken, funny moment...NOW.
Ecclesiastes 5:12 talks about sleeping well whether he eats little or much.. rich or poor... with or without. It is not what or how much you have that helps you sleep. It's your attitude about what you have. Having more actually adds more stress, even though we see it from the outside as what makes us happier. More things, money, weight loss, phone features will not help you sleep better at night (The abundance of the rich will not permit him to sleep).
My loving advice to you. I have a new saying that I like much better. Think about this; 'Life is a journey filled with destinations.' Hopefully you will always be striving for something, in several different areas of your life. It is good to set goals and work on improving, but life is not about one journey with one destination and BAM we are happy. I think in order to help us to remember to enjoy the journey, we have to think of it as a road trip around the country instead of a straight flight to Laguna Beach. The beach is beautiful and the sand will feel great under our feet but if we are not intentional about the trip, we will never see beautiful things along the way like the Rocky Mountains, Grand Canyon, and redwood trees. Even the simplicity of a sing-along in the car can create memories that will last a lifetime. Don't rush through life my little lady and appreciate the moments that are available to you right this very second.
My love to you and my prayer for an amazing life! Live to inspire <3 to create!
The purpose of sharing this letter is to inspire you. Please ‘like’ if you found this article useful and please ‘share’ if you want to help inspire others. You never know who is watching ;)