Revelation from seashells

For Mother's Day this year, my hubby booked a vacation to Atlantic Beach, NC. What priceless awesomeness that was!

For many, sleeping in on vacation is of primary importance. Unfortunately for me, I missed that memo and would walk along the shoreline with my coffee and camera well before there were stirrings in the place along side of me in our hotel bed.

My morning walks would consists of deep breathing and the quietness of the morning, which unfortunately evade our home in the early morning hours with our lovely boys. My prayer time would consist of rants, raves, frustrations, woes, pity me and fix my life kind of garble. But what I began to realize in my lists of what was uncomfortable and not satisfying in my life turned into something different.

Being a stay at home mom, the monotony of the day-in-and-day-out list of chores, and schedules can become, well, monotonous. Boring. Unspontaneous. Frustrating. Depressing. Pitiful. You get the picture. I do enjoying being able to stay at home. I am greatly blessed because of it. But when there are no words of thankfulness, or appreciation, or gratitude, the job becomes filled with bitterness and self-pity.

I was at that place before we left. My prayer times reflected that. It was becoming all to obvious that I needed a revelation or an epiphany, anything! I just needed an attitude adjustment!

As I was walking, I would look for the "perfect" seashell. They were all perfect in their own way, but I was on a mission for the "SPECIAL" one. We were there for 2 mornings and 2 evenings. Each day I would go in search of it. And every time I would not find "it", but I found new ones that were not there the day before. Or even just a few hours before!

Then it hit me! Although I was on the same beach, each time I would take the same path, the shells would be different. It occurred to me that this shoreline was my every day! But every day was different. There were different shells! Different things to see! Different things to explore! Shouldn't I be doing the same thing for me and my family! God wants to show me something new everyday, but instead I am looking down and wallowing in my pit instead of looking for something that is different!

The advantage that I have staying at home with the boys is that we get to share this experience together and enjoy creation around us! It is new each day! Just because my laundry pile doesn't seem to end. Or the dishes are never done. Or the fridge needs to be filled yet again, doesn't mean that I have to miss the newness of the day!

All this to say, enjoy the day, because with it brings new life.