4,000 Breakfasts

A friend of mine is the perfect example of calm. She is the epitome of kind. Gracefulness and gentleness are akin to her as most are to inhaling and exhaling. I’ve seen little rattle her. A sweet spirit that is slow to judge, quick to love, and ever available if you need a friend. So when the day came that she told me she was struggling with her children I was curious. I always knew she was human, but wondered sometimes if her ethereal nature could be ruffled by something completely normal as, well, children. She continued to explain that anger, a short temper, was her nemesis. A nemesis that was new and completely uncharacteristic. As she gave examples I tried not to giggle at the reality that anyone in her place would likely act the same way, if not more extreme, but to her this was a challenge of perseverance in parenting.

If I were to add up all the breakfasts I have made in the last five years as a parent it would be nearing 4,000. Some have provided great memory-making moments. Warm pancakes slathered in maple syrup triumphantly enjoyed after a morning of eggs being expertly cracked by small, unsteady hands and the batter mixed to perfection. Muffin batter scooped into tin cups and watched rising behind the oven’s door like a penny movie. Breakfast is often sweet and rewarding.

Then there are those, more than I would like to report, of fussing children who cannot be served fast enough. Where inventive concoctions of rice cakes and pepperonis are served because we didn’t make it to the grocery store. A grouchy mommy who can’t shake her own thoughts, hold their commands, and produce grub before the miniature army conquers the morning with stressful dissatisfaction. It too is a challenge of perseverance in parenting.

A few weeks ago I was cleaning the breakfast dishes as happy children skittered off. It was calm and peaceful. I realized that no fussing had ensued. All the bowls’ contents were eaten and then dishes put in the sink. There were even expressions of thankfulness. It came to me that three children, no doubt following each others’ efforts, had made it through breakfast as every parent would hope.

Crumbs still littering the table, milk pooling on the floor, but it didn’t matter. After 4,000 breakfasts there was unity. There was thankfulness. I basked in the moment and was reminded of the perseverance of my friend. Even when it seems hopeless and anger appears from seemingly nowhere, choosing instead to stay strong because I know, she knows, we hope, for growth and understanding from our children.

Albert Einstein is quoted as saying, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Makes me wonder if he had children. Life often feels like that with them. When shoes are put on the wrong feet 90% of the time. Coat jackets are utterly baffling as to which arm goes in which hole. Then one day it happens. It is like a domino effect, training wheels are off, and revelation is made and understood! Proof of the insane nature of the parent, of the unrelenting perseverance, is proven true.

³ Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, ⁴ and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, ⁵ and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. – Romans 5:3-5

Pictures from this post are of Science Friday’s Chemical Reaction Study. Four clues to chemical reactions: 1) Temperature change 2) Formation of bubbles (gas) 3) Color change 4) Formation of a chemical that won’t dissolve in a solution