Which Wind?

Today is my second post in the “Journey of Hope” series I am doing. This morning I woke up thinking about my purpose vs my usefulness…

I’ve come to learn there is a difference…

When a man does not know what harbor he is making for, no wind is the right wind. ~Seneca

Throughout my life I have worn many hats, played many roles. Being a mother is the most important and fulfilling role I have ever played. The hat that goes with the mommy costume isn’t always so glamorous though. At this stage of the game my purpose is that of being a mommy to Sam and Henry. This requires me to wear many hats. Or should I say costumes because it isn’t just a hat that defines our roles in life…

Some days I get to wear a baseball hat (Red Sox of course). Why? Because I’m too rushed to shower in the mornings. Honestly. Do you know how hard it is to shower, shave your legs, wash you hair and dry it to get out the door AFTER you’ve gotten two rugrats dressed, fed, watered and hopefully well behaved enough to let you get dressed alone?

Occassionally I get to wear not a hat but a referree striped shirt and whistle. Acutally, I wear that constantly considering how many fights I break up in this household between my boys. I blow that whistle a lot…

Often it is a maid’s white little hair piece (I don’t think I ever take that one off, it gets hidden underneath all the other hats I wear!). I am in a constant state of cleaning up after my children. Getting them to put their toys, shoes, etc. away is a neverending task. And my kitchen floor? Let’s just say I have a very friendly relationship with my mop…

Every day starting at 4:30 it is a hair net, you know the kind they wear in the food service industry? That’s me. Chef Cyndi, connoisseur, purveyor and heater-upper of all things made with chicken nuggets, tater tots, pop tarts, string cheese, meatballs, noodles, macaroni and cheese…you get it.

I always wear an apron. That NEVER comes off. The minute my backside hits any type of comfortable furniture I am required to serve food or beverage. The beverages of choice around here are chocolate milk and apple juice.

Along with that maid uniform, I wear scrubs like a nurse. Or a vet tech. I have a wonderful collection of band aids, gauze wrap, medical tape, antibiotic ointments, etc. I even have a bottle of that horrible reddish brown iodine solution they use in hopsitals. And cans of wound cleanser. This past week I’ve been nursing my dog who has a bum leg. I had to give her two enemas in the back yard. Yes, I wear scrubs a lot and for many reasons…

A daily if not hourly costume I wear is that of a taxi driver. No, my van is not yellow with black and white checks and a light up sign on the roof (although the boys would think that is fantastic). My van is black with dog nose prints and hand prints on all the back windows and cheerios, pretzels, jelly beans and french fries stuck in the seats and on the floor, along with dog hair that never seems to leave the presence of my van even though I vacuum it now and again. And some kid always writes “CLEAN ME” on the back of my van. I guess the outfit for that would be sunglasses, coffee or iced tea in hand or cup holder and t-shirt that says “I Make Sudden Stops for Bad Behavior.”

One of the last roles I get to dress up for around here is landscaper. Yes, I’m a mommy that cuts the grass. Not all year round, but during the summer I get to crank up the mower and go at it quite a bit. This is always a source of amusement in our house because for some reason my boys are of the belief that the mower is “Daddy’s mower” and that “Mommys don’t cut the grass.” Ha. This one does. So my landscaping attire includes shorts, old running shoes, tshirt, baseball hat (Red Sox of course) and iPod. And I must not forget my megaphone that is necessary to keep all boys with bubble mowers away from the real deal…

So what is the point of all these costumes, uniforms I wear to go with my purpose of Mommy? I ask myself that a lot. Afterall, I’m a mom whether I wear these costumes or not. But that’s not the point….My “Mommy Purpose” changes with the needs of my boys, just as the weather changes with the wind. Some days the wind in my world is calm and still. I may not need that referee whistle quite as much. Or no one gets sick and dogs don’t need legs wrapped or a squirt or two or three of saline wound wash, so my scrubs are left in the closet.

And then there are the days when my life is picked up by the irritable winds of reality and I am spinning like Dorothy headed to Oz. You see, Dorothy never went to Oz, she just dreamt about it. I dream about a lot of things when the winds of my life as Mommy give me pause to reflect and consider “What is my purpose?”

Yes, I doubt my purpose on a daily if not hourly basis. Some days I consider going back to work full time. But then another dandelion appears on my laptop keyboard or a rock placed on my night stand is a gentle reminder that no, this is the right wind. This is my purpose.

What is your purpose?

Which way does the wind take you?

Tell me….

And here are today’s freebies for the “Journeys of Hope” kit….

This freebie will be available in this thread by this afternoon:

http://www.divinedigital.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=176

And here is the blog freebie…remember, personal use and leave a comment and share with me which way the wind blows in your life right now, okay?

DOWNLOAD

There is a purpose to our lives that each day tugs at our sleeve as an annoying distraction. ~Robert Brault

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.. ~Ecclesiastes 3:1

Great minds have purposes, others have wishes. ~Washington Irving

Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it. ~Proverbs 22:6

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. ~Proverbs 23:7

Have a wonderful, windy day!

Best,
Cyndi