What do you do?

I spent this past weekend at a conference focused on Family Therapy.  During our first hour or two, we were asked to meet with another person in the room; our task was to answer four questions about ourselves and then switch, allowing the other to do the same.  

The room was filled with professional men and women, therapists, counselors, social workers, etc., along with a couple of us who are Professional Stay At Home Moms!  I ended up meeting with another mom…she and I had a lovely conversation, but I noticed something that has not left my heart and my mind.  When she was to answer the question about “what do you do”, she paused, shifted in her seat, let out a small, seemingly uncomfortable laugh and finally after a moment or two of reflection, replied, “Well, I do a lot of laundry and I drive my kids where they need to be.” 

Okay, fair enough.  

As a mom of a bunch of kiddos, I can totally relate to this, but I asked her to dig a little deeper…What else does she do?  

There have to be other things we are engaged in that fill our days and our thoughts…

ya know, the kind of things dreams are made of, 

the things that make us tick, 

the things that make our hearts beat a little happier and a little faster.  

Her eyes filled with tears as we spoke, she reflected and shared that she loves her early morning walks.  She loves the quiet and the time alone.   I asked her if she grants this to herself on a regular basis, she does not, so I challenged her to treat herself and while she was at it to find a keepsake to bring home each day, maybe a little rock or a sunflower alongside the road.  We talked about noticing the little things in our days, because they really are the big things.  I told her that I rarely go somewhere without bringing home a “treasure”, she was curious about what I do with these treasures – I told her sometimes nothing, sometimes I put them in my flower gardens or on a shelf, sometimes I just share them with my kids and then I’m complete.  I find that my kids now do the same, they find treasures in all the places we visit ~ maybe a pinecone or a leaf they’ve never seen, bark from a tree or a nest that has fallen to the ground.  These things awaken something within and I am so grateful I’ve taken the time to share this with our kids. 

So today, I challenge each of us to look at what we do…are you doing the little things in life that keep your heart happy and thriving?  Are you finding time to do a little something special for yourself each day? 

We all have loads and loads of laundry, 

we all have dishes that could trump Mount Rushmore on any given day, 

we all have places to go, 

deadlines to meet, 

kids to feed and little faces to wash…

but we also have minds that need filled, 

hearts that need lifted, 

and dreams that need conquering.  

So the next time someone asks you what do you do ~ 

give them a reply that will knock their socks off; 

you are so much more than the laundry piles and the stacks of dishes, you are more than the unpaid taxi driver or short-order cook.  

YOU are the Mom!!!  

Wishing you many treasure-seeking moments this month!

Love, Stacey 

(written as President's Message for DHSA)