Having posted for a while now on my other blog I realized that it wasn’t always quite working for me.  I wanted a place to ramble about other things.  So here we are. 

I was pondering boxes today.  Not cardboard or wood, mind you, but people boxes.  You know, those things other people are always trying to fit you into.  Square peg, roung hole and all that.  Why do you think that is?  Is it so hard for us to accept each other at face value that we must try to make each other conform to a particular box?  Or is it that we, as humans, are so uncomfortable with the unknown that we must try to immedately cram new people into a known box,  label, or stereotype rather than face our own fears and insecurities. 

Let’s take me for example.  Put me in an easy box.  Wife.  Mom.  Go out on a limb and you might qualify it enough to say stay-at-home mom.  Done.  Taken care of.  But how much does that tell you about me?  Not much really.  If I tell you you can’t describe me by my relationships but must describe me, personally, does it become more difficult?  Could you describe yourself this way?  You see… when I tried to come up with a user name, I found it to be far more difficult and time consuming that the task warranted.  I already have a blog where I talk about homeschooling my kids, doing stuff for my family, and what the collective WE have been up to.

But what about me.  Ballcapnoveralls used to be what I used, but that’s not a great fit now… 3jemsmom, kinda cutesy, but would work in a pinch… mrsdobbs… too much explaining to do…so, nope, not that either… Try to describe yourself in one short phrase that no one else has come up with, and still avoiding the lame-ness factor (me123@…), and it’s suddenly crucial that you have some real sense of your personal identity.  I’m still not sure I hit my mark… but I started thinking about things that were meaningful to me.  My family.  My home.  My own beliefs, opinions and convictions… Not that I don’t want he world to know I’m a happy wife and mom to 3 girls, but, It’s more than that.  The shaker song, “Simple Gifts” came to mind while I was pondering this, and I think it fits. 

“‘Tis a gift to be simple, ’tis a gift to be free, ’tis a gift to come down where you ought to be,  and when you find yourself in the place just right, it will be in the valley of love and delight.”

My life is a simple gift.  Quiet, uncomplicated, yet very satisfying.  I am who I am.  I get to decided every day what creative thing I want to do next.  Drawing houses is always a great option, maybe someday we’ll live in house I’ve designed.  Scrapbook?  Write?  Sew?  Cook something new?  Read something new?  Or just hang out with Al and the girls, now that life is like a vacation for us from Monday morning through Friday afternoon.  It’s like going to college all over again and just auditing all the great electives.

3 things I did this week that might surprise you:

1. I learned a few basic pronunciations of phrases in Setswana, the language of Botswana, as a book I’ve been reading made me curious.

2. Did more online research into the long term side effects of certain anti-convulsant drugs, and the long range implications of this for us as a family. 

3. Conquered my IMMENSE fear of heights and walked across a cable bridge at Fall Creek Falls SP that 7 years ago I swore I’d never walk on again.

I think I’m going to need a bigger box.