The trade off

(Beware, this post contains far too many comma splices and run on sentences. Also, most sentences will start with the word “but” or “and.” If these grammar issues are annoying to you, you’d probably benefit from just skipping to another post. :)

Sometimes I want to puke when I go on pinterest.  (Don’t misunderstand… I love pinterest and all the wonderful/creative/imaginative/you-get-the-picture things to be found there.)  But pinterest is a hub for all things perfect, especially when it comes to decorating and organizing one’s house: something that I have loved doing in the past and look forward to doing again!

Just recently, I’ve been rather cantankerous about my living situation which is magnified by the whole pinterest exposé of all things beautiful and organized. Because I moved back in with my parents after college, I am living, once again, in my bedroom from high school. This poor room contains its original contents, plus many miscellaneous dorm-room necessities, plus my whole kitchen and bedroom from the house I rented for the last two years of college.  It’s filled to the brim! (Proof: three, yes three bookshelves of varying heights, two nightstands, a desk, a random chair from my kitchen table, oh my!)

Tonight, however, I was reminded to rest in contentment. My mom and I both happened to be in the kitchen and we fell into conversation that lasted hours.  We didn’t solve all the problems in the world. Or even one problem. But we talked about life and the experience of living it. We talked about joys and disappointments, our strengths and weaknesses. It was so comfortable and normal.  So tonight I’m going to bed with this on my mind: what a cool experience this is to grow in relationship with my parents as an adult.  Maybe I don’t have the ability to decorate my own house and kitchen to perfection.  But I do have the ability to spend this time fortifying valuable relationships. 

A family photo from my college graduation. (Which is actually beginning to feel like a long time ago!)