Sunday lessons

This morning, I woke up grumpy. Like, murderously grumpy. The kids couldn't scratch their elbows without driving me crazy - so the process of getting everyone ready for church was deeply unenjoyable, to put it very nicely. 

Of course I wanted to believe that the children were just being so very naughty, and how could I possibly be expected to behave civilly to these monsters?? But, even a great pretender such as I couldn't ignore the reality at hand: I was the monster. :(

On a normal day, things would've continued to digress until my parenting had reached a deeply shameful state, and I simply longed for that day to end so a new & different one could begin. But, luckily for myself & all in our family, today is Sunday; and that meant we got to go to church meetings! Suffice it to say that it didn't take long before the spirit of that place (yes, in spite of dealing with 3 kids during Sacrament meeting & a very wiggly toddler for the rest of the meetings) worked on my heart & brought me back to a more loving and peaceful place. 

In Relief Society, we were asked to think about someone that we admire greatly, and why. Many people sprang to mind - I have an overabundance of people to look up to in my life - but suddenly I settled on the thought of my own children. 

These sweet children, who listen to my rantings and seemingly irrational demands all day long, who are constantly exposed to the full spectrum of my crazy, and yet who are at the ready with a hug or a kiss or a sweet smile at any point during the day. These children who can listen to me yell at them until they begin to cry, and then come directly to me for comfort. (That one always boggles me!!) These children who, on the worst of days, can still find reason to tell me with seemingly 100% sincerity, "You're the best mom ever!" How can they say that?? Have they been in a trance all day? Don't they see what a 3rd-rate mother I am?!

The answer is, no. No, they don't. These sweet little ones, who I am supposed to be teaching and nurturing, are my living breathing lesson in unconditional love. They see the real me in ways no one else does, and love me more purely and perfectly than anyone else. Pretty impressive, considering they can't even tie their own shoes. :)

So, Self, next time you find them to be unbearable and impossible... come on back here and give this a quick re-read. And then give them each a nice tight hug.