From Washing the Dishes by Thich Nhat Hanh

Especially for you, H.

"I enjoy taking my time with each dish, being fully aware of the dish, the water, and each movement of my hands. I know that if I hurry in order to go and have dessert, the time will be unpleasant, not worth living. That would be a pity, for every second of life is a miracle. The dishes themselves and the fact that I am here washing them are miracles!"

I seem to have forgotten lately that the most important thing to me, the very most important, is that I love my children and my husband well. Not that I have a clean house or all the laundry put away or anything else. I knew this once, not that long ago, and I have allowed the energy of some people around me to creep in and change this understanding. I want it back.

http://www.mothering.com/parenting/more-than-welcome-families-come-first-in-sweden

Comin' round the bend

I don't know where I've been or what I've been doing, but I'm starting to feel a little bit back. Well, maybe I do know. The fog, caused by too much of too much, is starting to clear. The blue sky that was hidden behind, or maybe resting, is coming back into view. Following the pushing away. GET OUT OF HERE!! I'VE NO SPACE FOR YOU!! They must have not known the secret. This me is sacred. I've earned this place with sweat and tears and bleeding nails scraping to climb, muscles flexed, and I will not let go. Not. Not.
It's good, so good. The fresh air, the understanding, the peace of it having been here all along. Once earned, never taken. Life, it's such a fuzzy kind of thing, isn't it?. I wish I had known this stuff would take so much courage. Or maybe I don't.