Is it me?
Today is one of those days when I feel like I have it all together. I’m handling the temper tantrums with peace. My quiet time was just the right length. The only thing that I have accomplished this morning is the chore list.
It’s been just over an hour since I came in from my walk. That time has been spent organizing and straightening the kitchen (which is on the MAIN chore list). But it’s past breakfast time, the kids are sitting on the couch and my husband seems to think this is all related to me.
Yesterday he and the kids went to run errands. They didn’t fight or argue or raise their voices. It was perfect harmony. “We did fine yesterday. I want to know what the difference is.” In wife translation that means “what have you done today to make things so tense.
I know it isn’t me. Each person is responsible for his attitude and his actions. My peace does not come from my surroundings (or the fact that the kids are not talking back. True peace come from my personal relationship with God REGARDLESS of the circumstances.
Knowing what I know does not make the situation any less painful. It hurts when my husband does not just back me up when I’m correcting my children. It is frustrating when I have had the children do the exact same thing for the last six months and they still ask “what do we do?”
Hiding in the closet, or the bathroom or the bedroom will not make things better. Neither will running away from home – even for a short mom’s night (or day) out. The little known truth is that there really isn’t much that can be done about the actions of others. It is only my response to those actions that I can fix.
So I know what the problem is – it’s my reaction to situations. And I know how to fix the problems – allow the peace of God to guide my words and my actions. But right now, for this moment, I’m hiding in the bedroom.