My Interrupted Life

Funny thing--I've been wanting to write all summer about what life is like being constantly interrupted by little ones and what that does to my brain. You'd think I'd be used to it by now, but if you walked through my house in the middle of the day, there's always a trail of unfinished things because every 2.5 minutes some little person needs something that usually requires me to go to a different room in the house. Obviously by the time I'm back, I've forgotten what I was doing before. And not being gifted with the multi-tasking talents most females have, by the end of the day my brain is mush. Which is why I have not taken the time to write about this all summer, since the only uninterrupted time I have is when the little angels are sleeping, which again, is mush-brain time. My poor husband. :) So how am I writing this now? Mostly one-handed, with a squirrelly one-year-old in lap, next to a two-year-old who insists the toy parrot needs to pee, and across from a singing four-year-old with a heaven-sent obsession with trains that keeps him easily occupied.


But I did start with "funny thing" and I haven't gotten to that yet.

Funny thing...as much as my 24-hour day is full of interruptions, I'm now voluntarily taking it to a whole new level of depth: the "Interrupted" book. Thanks Jen Hatmaker. (My dining room has suddenly erupted into a chorus of "Let It Go" by the way. I don't even know how my kids know that song when they've only seen Frozen a couple times! Sorry, rabbit trail interruption!)

So, Interrupted. I haven't read a book this quickly in a long time. I'm not through yet, but so far it has caused me to ask so many questions and has echoed my thoughts in so many ways....

Is this what life is all about?
Isn't there more? I know there's more!
But what will it cost? What will I need to change?
How do I refuse to live the American dream and still live here?
Stuff, so much stuff. Even when we chose to have less "stuff" than the average household, it feels like too much. Can't we all just have 5 changes of clothes? It would sure make doing laundry a breeze!
I wish I had less stuff...oh, but it must be the perfect stuff. If I'm just going to have the bare necessities, it better be the right style. Modern minimalist with a touch of warmth.
That means I need to change out some of the furniture we have. Here I go again, obsessing about stuff, when there's someone dying of hunger every 3.6 seconds!
So what should I do? I want to frame pictures of families eating their typical meals all around the world and hang them on my dining room walls to remind us to be thankful. I'm serious. I grew up in Mexico. I've been in homes with dirt floors where families laugh around their Coca-Cola card table, enjoying their meal of tortillas and beans. Just because people are poor doesn't mean they're sad. They just know how to enjoy life better than I do.
But there are those who are suffering too. I don't know what to do about that yet.
I'm a naturally guarded person. I don't put my whole being and emotions into something without being sure it's the right thing to invest in. Not because I'm selfish. Well, I am selfish, but that's not my heart motivation. I'm overwhelmed by so much need, I know I can't meet all of it. But it would be selfish to not do a single thing because of that.

So as I sat in my kitchen this morning, making my to-do list for the day, the dishes and laundry and the time it takes to make dinner seemed so insignificant. But then I looked at my Joshua, running around with a conductor hat and train whistle, my Nadia balancing more baby dolls in her arms than she could handle, and my Ethan, dragging his blanket and pulling at my shorts. These here will be world-changers, people. Beware! Our view and perspective is so tiny. We really think we can plan our future! We have no idea. No idea at all.

I fought back tears as I pulled Ethan up onto my lap. I know there's more. I know I have to show these kids somehow what it is to pour our life out as an offering like Jesus, broken for needy, hopeless people. It has to come out of my head and into our lifestyle. And I still don't know exactly how. But this is my prayer: Jesus please keep interrupting my life. Raise up in me, my husband and my children a holy passion. Amen.

Get it. Read it. Live it. http://jenhatmaker.com/interrupted