I am surrounded by comfortable habits that I take for granted.

Like my family.

It’s not always “comfortable” to be a parent.

I guess that’s true.

Life is messy. Things happen. We never know what lays up ahead of us. We never know what’s going to happen.

Everybody’s life is like that. Nobody can plan for every occurrence.

My biggest habit, though, is being a parent.

I’m the catcher in the rye.

The buck stops….and starts….with me.

That’s kind of weird to really realize that. It’s common….knowledge….that we sweep under the rug because it’s so common.

We don’t think about it because it’s an everyday kind of thing.

Now, I have my normal habits that are so regular that if I don’t make my coffee and take my vitamins in the same order everyday it makes me feel like I’m really “bucking the system” or something.

I don’t believe that I’m OCD or anything….but I am a creature of a small range of habits.

I do the same things…the same way…. because the efficiency of it lets me be lazy.

Sudden bursts of efficiency let me lay back the rest of the time…..or something.

Maybe that’s the internal goal….but it seems like, no matter what I think or plan,that there’s always something to worry about doing…..and then, sometimes, actually do.

I think that our heads would explode (!!) if we could really see how much all these people….all these “soul wrappers”….all these members of our families really mean to us and to our lives.

Our heads would explode if we understood how much some of these things….these people…. really mean… before we’re gone.

OUR HEADS WOULD EXPLODE!!!

I bought some sandwiches from Ingles last night….submarine sandwiches….hoagies….grinders…..what do you call them?

Sandwiches…..like at Subway….but better.

I brought them home…..and we ate them for supper.

That sounds a lot more mundane than it is.

Maybe it’s as mundane as it sounds.

Nothing too fancy about that.

Nothing too special.

But….I looked around at that “mundane” scene….and the thought crossed my mind that, “hey!!! This is my favorite habit.”

I don’t think that there has been a single good thing in my life that I didn’t take for granted.

My inattention has damaged.

My shotgun-like distraction has made me miss things while I tried to see everything in the world.

While I tried to see everything, I missed the things I should have been noticing around me.

What’s that “forest for the trees” saying?

Can’t see the forest for the trees?

Having something that I can take for granted is something that I better pay closer attention to.

Not everybody has a chance not to notice something good like that.

I better wake up.

 

 

PS….Isaac took this picture.