Thursday, March 13, 2014

ordinary wonderful

IMG_8206 IMG_8199On the way into school this morning amidst the chatter about what we should have for dinner tonight and what the plans are for this weekend, I told my family that I'd woken up this morning with butterflies in my tummy. Excited butterflies. The type of butterflies you get when you know something wonderful is about to happen.

At seven, after the alarm had gone off, I had lain there for a few minutes listening to the birds singing, watching the early sunlight come through the trees and wondered about those butterflies. All morning as I got girls dressed, brushed and braided hair, signed school notices and searched for missing sunhats, I thought about what those butterflies were trying to tell me. As far as I could remember there was nothing exciting going on today, nothing out of the ordinary at all.

But those butterflies stayed with me and they danced. They made my steps feel lighter and they made the mundane feel brighter.

And so later on, in the car, I didn't really expect an answer or an explanation, I just wanted to share my story and possibly spread a bit of the flittery butterfly feeling.

But it was my farmer boy in the passenger seat who turned to me driving with the explanation. He told us that this is it. This, our everyday normal, is a blessing and totally butterfly worthy.

And it took me a second but I knew he was right. I didn't need to wait for a phone call, or an email, or a new dress to make my day. This car ride into school with our darlings, having to stop hard to let a family of ducks waddle across the road, a conversation about the beanie queue, brilliant glittery sunshine, a quick conversation with some lovely Mums in the car park, our first coffee out in ages, shopping for organic veg by the lake and then home to clean up the breakfast mess, to hang the washing on the line, to pull all the hair out of the girls shower drain, to pick and process a batch of tomatoes, to do the farm chores and to plant out the short creek paddock, this is what the butterflies were dancing about.

I'm so great at taking on all the sadness in the world, I think it's time to acknowledge what I have right here.

After all we have just been through, this everyday-day might be one of the best of my life. We are incredibly lucky for our normal. We are blessed with what we have. This is it! This normal everyday-day is going to be pretty wonderful. The butterflies were right. I'm happy and in love and alive.

Big love to you my friends in your days, doing what you do.

xx



PS Kathy A from Brisbane, can you email me, I have something I'd like to send you. x


47 comments:

  1. Isn't it wonderful to 'stop and smell the roses' appreciate what's right under our noses, I imagine these times to be the ones I talk of as 'the best days of my life' when I'm 90 and in a home. Enjoy! xx

    www.twinsplusonemumma.com

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  2. This is the holy grail, my friend. x

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  3. Absolutely - I've lost my voice you know so I'm just thieving from Anne Shirley ...
    "I went looking for my ideals outside myself and realised it's not what the world holds for you, its what you bring to it. The dreams dearest to my heart are right here."
    xxx

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  4. Beautiful post Kate and so true. We all need to remember these things amidst all the everyday stuff. Gorgeous tomatoes too x

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  5. Nw, I have butterflies, too!!!! Thank you,
    xxxxxxx Ale

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  6. Seeing how great our everyday normal is a gift! My middle boy said t me last night " what are ou doing tomorrow mum?" I replied " no plans, just hanging at home with Blake" & he asked if it ws boring because it s pretty much what i do every day now. I explained that yeah some days it can be boring but I feel pretty lucky not to have to go back to work & instead spend my days hanging out at home watching Blake grow. I think he understood :)

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  7. I would love some normal, there is so much going on around us at the moment, I crave the normal. Xxxx

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    1. Oh Cath, I've had to adjust to a new 'normal' for us, it hasn't been easy. I feel for you.
      cheers Kate

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  8. What a lovely post, Kate. Sometimes we forget what we have.

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  9. This was gorgeous! I love it. x

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  10. What you have said is so totally true. It is wonderful that you have it and even more wonderful that you truly appreciate it. Thankyou for sharing it.

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  11. This is the best post I've read in ages. Sometimes I almost feel it but then guilt kicks in and spoils it all for me. You have nailed it though, it's absolutely ok to see the good around us and just what we have in the moment.
    cheers Kate

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  12. Your post gave me goosebumps and made me smile. Life is butterfly worthy!

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  13. I had an enlightening day too. Different from yours, but enlightening all the same. Here's to goodness and gratitude and beautiful ordinary x

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  14. A perfect and timely reminder. Thank you! And thank you to the quoter of Anne Shirley. I love her!

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  15. I love the wonderful, beautiful, normal. This made me smile after a hectic day. Happy days!

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  16. Beautiful thought! This is something i try to remember everyday ... some days work better than others but its worth the try. :) i now own a happy day box. there is a card for every day to jot down happy and beautiful things which happened that day. like a happiness dairy.
    Take care, Anne

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  17. Thanks for the reminder to lovenwhere we are at....ordinary normal is good. Xxxx

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  18. Great post - ordinary is good. Jo x

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  19. I love your writing, it give sense to so much in my life. My theme of this year is "GRATITUDE", and it makes all little things more brilliant.
    Jutta x

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  20. Kate you are definitely onto something :) The here and now is what we have, and what a blessing to have that focus. x

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  21. Now, this is an excellent post! xxx

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  22. Yes, we all have so much good in our lives every day, even if it is hard to see sometimes. It might take someone else to point it out for us, other times, it comes after a good cleansing cry and we see things aren't really so bad, or sometimes its when the ray of sunshine it illuminating something so beautifully that it makes us stop and reflect.

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  23. Lovely said. I felt the same today too! And I felt happier than ever before. So calm and so grateful. May this life continues to grow in love!

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  24. I think we often get caught by traps. Media telling us that we long fot the exciting. I released myself from that and too am happy about our everydays. Yes we are free to chose so. Everydays is not boring. Everyday is so important for young children. And so good for us too. Why deny?
    Love.

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  25. Striving for ordinary everyday days is my thing. There is nothing better.

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  26. :) Just been feeling the same here in France... (Butterflies are quick to spread ! )
    In fact it came a bit differently ! ;) But the idea is the same. Yesterday I had a phone call from one of my publishers. She was so pleased with my last submission that she said " I hope this collection will go on for over 20 years!"
    When I put the phone down I realised that in 20 years I'll be close to 80 years..; Gosh what a shock! 20 years, it's nothing! So I looked at my husband and thought "how many years still for the two of us being together ?"
    Since then I decided everyday would be a precious day ! A day to apprecaite him and not feel mad because... he hasn't done this or that or whatever... :) I just hope I can feel these butterflies for many many more years ! Let's appreciate the life we have at it's best every single minute ! :)

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  27. Your lovely post plus all of the sweet comments that followed it...thank you for the smiles! :)

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  29. hooray!
    must be something in the air. I just read an equally wise and lovely post on tikki's blog.
    love the moment.
    your post also reminded me of a Leunig cartoon a small while ago, where the character is wondering, no marvelling, at the fact that he had this lovely kind woman with him, calm surroundings, when the whole rest of the world seems to be in shreds.
    i want to eat those tomatoes!

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  30. It's so true - we don't realise sometimes he amazing our lives are until something threatens it all ( just caught up n your news. So relieved you are ok xxxxxx)

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  31. A wonderful heart warming post and so true. Hugs and blessings to you and your family. :)

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  32. Indeed! Easy to get caught up, rush past & miss it; but this ordinary is where the extraordinary hides I reckon:)

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  33. Beautiful post Ms Kate. Ordinary wonderful is pretty special I think too. xxxx

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  34. So wonderful that you have this insight.

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Thanks so much for stopping by...

I do read every single comment you leave and appreciate it very much, but I should let you know that I can be a wee bit on the useless side when replying to comments, that's just me, everyday life sometimes gets in the way....so I'll apologise now, just in case.

Kate XX

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