*If you give a Mommy time alone...

...she'll sit down at the computer screen to attempt her third blog post (in a week) and realize she's REALLY thirsty, so she'll go put on water for tea.  Waiting for the water to boil, she'll hear the Blue Jays squacking in the back yard and know that the hawk HAS TO BE NEAR and so she'll fly out the door and run toward the sounds as she watches the hawk, being spied, flying away.

Then such mommy will, with upraised hands in gratitude to the God of the Universe, thank her heavenly Daddy for his tender care as she makes her way back to the kitchen.  Leaving her muddy shoes at the back door, she'll notice how filthy the floor has gotten in one day and that her father washed this floor just yesterday and so she'll head to the kitchen to get a rag, only to see some cups laying around and the clean dishes needing to be put away before her father comes back from dropping his wife off at dialysis.  (He hates clean dishes left in the sink!)

In her excitement over God's watchful eye and helpful bird-reminder, she'll call her sister (who's given her this respite time) to talk to her boys and remind them of how much God loves them...
Such son will remind her that if the hens had been put away like he planned to but was persuaded by such mom not to, this would not have happened.  Asking the son if he'd like mom to put the hens away, he will say, 'yes, that would be really good.  Thank you.'

Being a committed mommy, she'll head out, only to return, knowing thse darling hens won't budge from their dirt without some food, so she'll turn around and get them a slice of bread...She'll pour her tea and head back out, calling sweetly, 'Girls, oh girls, mommy's got a treat'.

Once at their house, hens obediently following her because there is a reward to be had, she'll spot the filthy dirty water bucket.  Because hens have to drink clean water and her sons must have thought it 'wasn't so bad', she will dump the disgusting water out and head to the rainwater she's gathered earlier this week, in hopes that the water isn't too thick with mosquitoe larva!  She'll passionately, patiently wipe out the sides of the bucket, filling it with clean water, all the while thanking God for this opportunity to be a servant.

Back in the house, she will put away the clean dishes and think, "the only way to really get rid of this terribly painful cold, flu, whatever, is to juice some carrots and apples."  Since the juicer is right next to the teapot, she'll steep her tea a little longer and pull the juicer up to the edge of the hutch to put a cup under.  She will begin to cut up the apples, peel the hairy carrots as she spies her father pulling into the driveway...

She will run to the front door, unlock it because her father  inevitably has groceries and head back to peeling carrots.  He'll bring in food that needs to be put away, so, after she finishes getting the vege/fruit ready to juice, she will put away lettuce, salad dressing, tomatoes he bought and realize that a tomato would be great in her juice, so she'll head to the fridge and  take the old tomatoes that she bought last week out and add them. 

When the drink is ready to enjoy, she thinks to herself that if she doesn't do the clean up from the juicer now, she will most likely forget, and so she'll do dishes in the sink, along with the juicer.  Her hopes are on being able to sit down and type.

Forty minutes have ticked away.  She sits back down to write her post when her father comes in with laundry and since there are two new 'chicks' in a box in the way of the laundry room door, she will jump up from her chair to make sure he can get by and she will also remember there are two other two boxes her sons dumped in the laundry room so she'll try to head in before him to be sure they aren't in his way...they will converse about what is in the machine and if he can just wash his things with the rags, etc. that are in there.  She noddingly approves.


When she is about to remember what she thought about writing, her father, having loaded the machine, will come in, sit down next to her, tell her about the attention his cowboy hat brought at Walmart last night.  Then, in the midst of their conversation, her cell phone will ring and it will be a friend, confirming details about dropping off her stepson tomorrow to spend the day and night...that conversation will last a few minutes,  and her father tired of waiting around, will head off to the other room.  When he notices that the mommy is off the phone, he will make his way back to the computer desk, sit and tell her yet another story from last night.  She will listen attentively and smile as he conveys to her how last night, at the River Center, his wife, her mother, made a scene over someone needing chairs at their table, them waiting for their children to finish the River boat cruise.  She will ponder how to respond in respect to both of them as she prays for just the right words.  He, finished with his lament, will wander away to his puzzle table, muttering how tired he is from all the walking he's done lately and how he needs to relax and how long it has been since he did his puzzle.  Her head will spin, thoughts whirring around about what she was doing. 

Oh, yes, she will remember.

Since the mommy has been given time, she will pause, breathe deeply and remember.  She was writing her gratitude list, two days late. She will think about grateful she is for these moments, wrapped in God-filled peace because He is actively involved in every moment of her every day. She will ponder the God-incident of hen protection, using Blue Jays squacking to call her out. She will then thank God again for her breath, life, all God's gracious gifts. 

She will then head to the bathroom, tea and juice cleansing her, reflecting that a post about what life is like when a mommy has time, one minute at a time, is enough.   

The end.

* I wrote this story in response to my attempts to write on Ann's Multitude Monday, but Jennifer's God-Bumps & God-Incidences invited me to remember how Today, He met me in the yard...had to share. 
I'm sure we, as mothers, have all had these days or maybe our lives are like this every day...I know mine is...hope you enjoyed it!
Daune