Out the Door to Do Chores

This morning as I was heading out the door to do my morning chores, this picture was snapped of me. I suspect this picture is more like what everyone knows me as best, compared to the other picture I put on this blog. This is the real me. Recent and how I look. My hair pulled up and twisted in the front, covered. Its a brisk wintery morning, wind chills in the 20's. The bedroom floor was quite cold this morning forcing me to quickly put some wool socks on. The wood stove had died down in the night and no one woke to put on another log. My dear husband was off to work early this morning and had no time to get the fire going. The chore fell on my shoulders but that is fine with me. I enjoy getting a cozy fire going and sitting on the floor in front of the stove warming up. Tonight we are going to see much colder temperatures than we have seen in a while. It seems more natural to have cold weather in winter ! As I have finished breakfast dishes, it is now time to start cooking for lunch. It is a cycle that I don't often tire of. After all, as Kahlil Gibran wrote so wisely, " Work is love made visable." What truth. When love is there, it is with joy we fulfill our duties. There is such pleasure in sitting at the table, family all around you and seeing them enjoy the meal you prepared. Hearing the laughter and the talk of the day around the table is something of great joy. It saddens me greatly to see restaurants packed knowing that at home, around the dining room table, families learn so much about one another. Mothers notice when something is just a tiny bit "off" with one of the children. That little worried expression, or unusual quietness. Little signals that go unmissed as you sit across from one another. In restaurants and fast food places, the noise, the hurriedness, the FAST of the very name of the place is not good for long lengthy conversations. It is fun to go out once in a while and we do that. Pizza at Cici's is what we do. How many times we laughed to see our boys eat up towards 15 pieces of pizza at times. The girls horrified by it. Now our table is set for two more often than not but still, what joy there is at each meal as my husband takes my hands in his, thanks God for me and thanks God for the food on our table and for the hands that prepared it. He says "amen" then squeezes my hands and smiles. Then the conversation starts. Sometimes it is just chit chat and other times we share burdens or joys.

Don't go out to eat tonight. Have a family meal around the table with a home cooked meal ! What fun it can become.