My husband is amazing at a million things, but it never fails when the kids or I open the dryer when we’re doing our laundry that his is sitting in there as a wrinkled mess because he forgets to complete it almost every time. Seeing as how laundry is one of my least favorite chores, I could easily lose my mind over this because now I have additional work to do that shouldn’t be my responsibility, but instead, I push the fluff setting and return 20 minutes later to fold each piece of laundry for him.
Why do I do this? I changed my mindset about what’s worth getting upset about and started thinking how blessed I am to have this problem. As I fold each piece of clothing, I think about a special time he’s worn a shirt or laugh at the holes in his clothes he refuses to throw away after 20 years. I crease his uniform with special care because I know there are too many police wives who would give anything to have the opportunity to fold their husband’s uniform again.
When I see dirty dishes on the dining room table or a bag of chips left out after one of my kids had a snack, I’m thankful for the opportunity to be able to purchase snacks, make meals, and provide for my family.
If I find clothing items randomly in the middle of the floor, I carry them to the kids’ hampers, remembering how tiny their bodies once were and remind myself to grasp every fleeting moment because some day too soon I will not have any clothes to pick up and put away other than my own.
If a task takes less than 60 seconds to complete or correct, ask yourself if it’s worth the fight. If the task needing to be completed isn’t a chronic issue, instead of jumping straight to irritation mode, take a breath, find a blessing in the mess, and know it’s not a big deal. In a blink, these problems will be gone, and you may just long for them to return someday.
