Drops of delight


“When we reach a point of consecration, our afflictions will be swallowed up in the joy of Christ. It does not mean we won’t have afflictions, but they will be put in a perspective that permits us to deal with them. With our steady pursuit of joy and with each increasing measure of righteousness we will experience one more drop of delight- one drop after another- until, in the words of a prophet, our hearts are brim with joy. At last the soul’s cup finally runs over!”

-Neal A Maxwell

I read this quote the other day and it really struck me. The night before Tom and I had had one of those good long revealing chats. Where he shed some new and needed light on a few things. One of the things I came away with was that I need to find more “highs” so that when mothering trials make me dip down, I don’t go as low. Reading this quote the next morning, I felt struck that a simple way that I could increase my levels of joy would be by noting the “drops of delight” in my days. I struggle with contention, and the ever present bickering between my boys. Sometimes it feels that it’s all my days are full of. And yet at the end of the day, if I look back for all the drops of delight, I realize that those moments of contention were a small percentage of the day. It’s just that I allow them to loom large in my mind.
Monday:

  • Scotland leaving an envelop with cut out hearts, two pieces of candy, and a “jewel” in an envelop near my bed.
  • Kara watching the boys so I could attend a new yoga class at the Y. The sun was streaming in. The teacher was warm and welcoming. My body was strong and flexible.
  • When I picked up Chiara from the YMCA kids zone, I asked “How’d it go Chiara? Did you have a fun time with your friends?” She looked at me sadly and said, “Andy. Scots.”

Tuesday:

  • Andy was sick. but he faced it like a gentleman. He quietly thanking me every time I cleaned out his bowl, or brought him a paper towel to wipe his mouth.
  • The delight in Andy and Chiara’s eyes when I welcomed them up to sit in the drivers and passengers seats while we waited in the van during Scotland’s musical theater class.

Wednesday:

  • Playing “Go to the Dump” and “War” with Anders. His face lighting up and his jolly laugh as we chanted, “1-2-3 War!”
  • The way Scotter leans his head on my shoulder when we read together. We’re reading “The Wizard of Oz” together right now. He reads a page, I read a page. We do it when the littles are asleep. It’s our time. A special time.
  • Chiara’s vocabulary is expanding rapidly. Today, there was a skirmish downstairs and Anders started crying. Chiara looked at me and said “Ahee Andy!” (I hear Andy.) Then she frowned, tilted her head and said “Owee!” (Anders got hurt.)
  • The way Chiara followed me into the room where Scotland was crying, and rubbed his back in sync with me. Her face motherly and caring.
  • Watching Scotland hold Chiara’s hand, and slowly guide her around the school behind me.
  • Being together as a family carving pumpkins, laughing about the “guts.” And sharing ideas of what to carve.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *