The front portion is supposed to be reserved for collecting items as we are preparing to leave the house or storage for people when they are visiting. However, family being family, it sometimes gets used as a catch-all on our way from one room of the house to another.
I came down one afternoon and glanced at the door dresser. I had just been putting some clean laundry away and wasn't thrilled to see more stuff to be put away. Then I sheepishly realized that most of it was my stuff anyway. (Thankfully I noticed before I bellowed at the kids.)
Then I was struck by the absolute bizarre combination. There was the People Magazine Scott had brought home. We do not live far from the Gosselin family of Jon & Kate Plus 8 fame & are frequently contrasted with their family when we are out and about in the community. Scott said he just had to read the cover article and brought it home for me to look at. We were both concerned at the portrayal of a family as "in need" living in their very, very, very nice home.
Then there was the cardboard box from Elyas's recent order of Tom's Shoes. We are so impressed with the company's dedication to helping others. Tom's motto is One for One, meaning that for every pair of shoes you purchase, they will give a pair of shoes to a child needing shoes in countries such as Haiti, Argentina, and Africa. We can't afford to purchase Tom's for all of the kids, but the Shoes for Elyas were the same price as the Robeez we usually buy and far less than the Stride Rites. And, as we have worked hard to become more deliberate in our decisions and use of money, we feel Tom's is a good fit when we can do it.
Then there was the book I had grabbed off the New Arrivals rack at the library, Cinderella Ate My Daughter by Peggy Orenstein. I thought it would mostly be the woman power, stick it to 'em, hippie-feminista nonsense I have come to expect whenever I read something designed to educate me on the mine-field of life my daughters are wading through. However, the title intrigued me and so I planned to skim it and return it a few days later. Instead, I found myself engrossed and mesmerized as I read through thoughts on the "girl culture" that we largely avoid due to homeschooling. Shelby, Isabelle, Scott, & I had many discussions centered around each chapter as I read parts aloud and we discussed it together.
And, of course, there was my standard morning cup of coffee which I am forever losing. I take it with me all over the house for most of the morning and it isn't unusual for me to call out, "Has anyone seen my coffee? I've lost it again!" The kids love it because for all the things I remember (both the important and the mundane), they don't understand how I can loose a mug filled with coffee several times a day, day after day. It really is ridiculous.
There it all was in one place - the miss-mash of my interests assembled before my very eyes. It was like looking at a representation of my brain. I could see for just a moment the contradictions of my Physics and English Literature majors: the gossip magazine, the philanthropic shoes, the culture wars book, and my caffeine addiction all rolled into one.
Which then lead me to look at the children a little differently all day. I found myself wondering if I pigeon hole them without intent, expecting each one to follow a set path based on what I think should relate to their likes and dislikes. It lead to a lot of conversations over the next several days: Why would you do it that way? Why do you like this and not that? What do you think about . . . ?
It is much easier to presume we know someone based on stereotypes than to take the time to investigate further. I learned a lot about my kids during those chats, and they in turn learned a lot about themselves and each other. It was, in all actuality, very cool.
Now, the challenge is to remember.
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