As a mom I always try and stay awake until everyone is in the house before I go to sleep. But the other I was asleep when Charlie finally came home. As usual he had been out later than I wanted him to be.
Almost 1 o’clock in the morning—and I’m not going to pretend that I’m happy about that. There are some things with our kids that we can talk about until we’re blue in the face, and sometimes you just get tired of arguing.
But that’s not really what this story is about. Because when Charlie came home, he said something that caught me off guard. He offered to take me to Kroger today to get some sodas for the house.
Now, that might not sound like a big deal to somebody else. But it meant something to me. Charlie doesn’t have a job right now. And yet, this week, he’s bought dinner. He’s bought sodas several times. And now he’s offering to buy drinks for the house.
He’s finding little ways to contribute. He’s finding little ways to help. And sometimes as a mom, you have to learn to notice those things. I had given him my soda the night before because I was being nice, so naturally, he owes me a drink.
I’m going to hold him to that one! We had talked about going to Sonic because I saw that the drinks were half price yesterday. But then I remembered that my QT app is working. And Charlie said he’d take me to QT today.
So forget Sonic. We’re going to QT. Because I can make my own cherry Dr Pepper for 49 cents. Woohoo! Sometimes you just have to celebrate the little victories. But there was something else that happened today that meant even more to me.
David came home and took me to go pay the car payment. Then he called and asked if I could go with him to Oklahoma tomorrow. He said that if we left around 9 or 10, I’d be able to get some work done before we left.
And something about the way he said it made me stop. Because for the first time in a long time, I felt like he remembered that I work, too and I have things I’m working on. I have posts to write. I have things to finish.
I have a website I’m building. I have work that matters to me. And maybe it sounds like a small thing to someone else, but having my husband acknowledge that meant more to me than he probably realizes.
I’m actually going to ask him if we can leave around 3 or 4 instead. If we’re going to Oklahoma, I’d rather get up there early. We need to take care of Gerald’s yard, and Gerald doesn’t necessarily have to go with us if he doesn’t want to. I can take Charlie.
The only problem is that I can’t get into Gerald’s house, so he’ll need to go check the house. But that’s okay. We’ll figure it out. And somewhere in the middle of all of this—between the late night, the sodas, the car payment, the Oklahoma trip, the yard work and my 49-cent cherry Dr Pepper—I found myself thinking:
Maybe this new side of life really is a Godsend. Maybe blessings don’t always arrive looking like blessings. Sometimes they arrive as your son offering to buy the groceries or drinks even though he doesn’t have a job.
Sometimes they look like your husband finally recognizing that the work you do at home is still work. Sometimes they look like somebody saying, “I’ll take you.” And sometimes they look like a 49-cent cherry Dr Pepper.
Life isn’t perfect in our house. I’m not going to pretend it is. There are still things that frustrate me. There are still conversations we need to have. There are still nights when I wish things had gone differently.
But I’m learning something. I don’t want to be so busy noticing what is wrong that I miss what is right. Because there are good things happening here. Charlie is growing. David is seeing me.
And I’m learning to stop for a minute and recognize the little blessings sitting right in front of me. Maybe that’s what Grateful Moments is really supposed to be about. Not pretending life is perfect.
Not ignoring the hard days. But stopping long enough to say: I see this. I appreciate this. And today, I’m grateful. Grateful for my family. Grateful for the little things. Grateful for being seen. And, yes… Grateful for a 49-cent cherry Dr Pepper.
Grateful, Thankful, and Blessed.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
