Did you know that spilled gravy could stay on the counter at my house for weeks if I didn't clean it up? Or milk from a cereal bowl. Or make someone clean it up. Ditto for the chocolate slathered on the front of the silverware drawer. And the jelly dripping down the side of the counter. Not to mention the sticky doorknob or the refrigerator with juice spilled. Kool-aid dribbled across the tile. Silly putty on the couch pillow. Popcorn dropped on the floor. Candy wrappers from Easter hither and yon. Peanut butter on the pantry door. Seriously, these are the norm. Daily. And I have great, helpful kids.
But it's like each person thinks, "nobody will notice." Or something. Not really sure. But you know, I'm not sure we really outgrow this stage without a lot of concentrated effort. We always hope someone else will clean up our messes. At work. In relationships. In parenting.
It's hard to face what we have done sometimes. It's like dropping a box of eggs. There's no easy way to clean it up, but if you wait, it just gets worse. Relationships are just the same. When you blow it. Or when you need to make changes, it's best to get to it. Though it's hard to gather the will to do so.
So, when I see the stuck on food and the egg yolk drying on a plate, I am going to take it as a reminder to keep on top of things in my relationships. To keep things "cleaned up" so that I don't have to face a worse mess later on.
Hope you do too. Especially with those great kids in our lives. We need to be that example.
blessings,
rhonda
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