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Gray areas. Black and white issues. We hear these and similar terms every day. To hear some Christians talk, myself included, God created a world that looks like a 1950’s television set.
I am a very literal person as a general rule. I like things clear cut and preferrably dried. If it’s wrong, it’s wrong. If it’s right, it’s right. I don’t like and am not personally comfortable with things that are neither right nor wrong. And, if I’m truthful with myself, I tend to behave as if it isn’t possible for something to be ‘neutral’ until applied.
Not everything in our lives is black and white, right or wrong. As much as I’d like to say it isn’t so, I cannot. Chocolate is not evil. That makes it good doesn’t it? No… not to the diabetic! To one who lacks self-control it may also be a sin to partake knowing your personal weakness. To another, they may choose to partake to LEARN self-control. It depends upon the individual.
Stealing is wrong. This is a black and white thing. It is wrong to deliberately take what doesn’t belong to you from whom it does belong to in order to satisfy your own personal lusts. Coveteousness is wrong. Always. Idolatry is wrong. Whether worshipped as a ’statue’ or by your behavior. I can idolize an author, Pastor, TV show, or my Bible version.
Black and white. God didn’t make a world that is black and white. He created a world of vibrant colors! Reds, blues, golds, purples, greens… the lists are almost endless! God created a world that makes ‘technicolor’ look dull! Not everything must be relegated to good or bad, black or white.
What is good or bad should be clearly defined as such. I am not advocating a world of blurred images! I just hate to see that which can be used to the glory of God attacked because some are weak and should avoid it for their own consciousness sake.
Color. God is a brilliant artist of a colorful world. Picture the church in full color and embrace that the Lord has made it so!
Two people read the Word. They both believe. They both repent. They both confess Jesus as Lord. They are both baptized. They both attend church. They both stand firm on the ‘five solas’
Sola Scriptura- Scripture Alone
Sola Christus- Christ Alone
Sola Gratia- Grace Alone
Sola Fide- Faith Alone
Sola Deo Gloria- To God Alone be the Glory
They both homeschool, they both are Titus 2 “house despots” and both are commited to the pursuit of godliness in all of their actions.
One woman uses Veritas Press for her curriculum, the other woman uses PACES. One of the women is a Vegan. The other woman, while not feeding her family garbage, enjoys a good roast, sourdough bread, and chocolate cake! One of the women wears Birkenstocks, corduroy skirts, and plaid flannel shirts in fall. The other woman wears jeans, hand knitted sweaters, and turtlenecks with Keds.
One woman prefers the ESV. The other woman reads the NASB. One has one child. The other has seven. One family has a television with cable. The other family has never owned a television and probably never will. One family reads Harry Potter and C.S. Lewis, the other family avoids all fantasy and fairy tales.
You couldn’t guess which family is which. I’ve mixed them up so as not to make it possible to see a trend. There is none. The no-TV family reads HP. They also are dresses-only. The family with one child has the TV, wears pants, but does not read fantasy. I tell you this so that you can see that there is not a direct corrolation between ALL of their choices. Just some.
The women are UNIFIED in Christ. Their doctrine is identical. Their convictions are similar. Their preferences are very different. They are not identical to one another even though they share a unity in the bond of peace.
Why do we act as though we cannot be united in Christ until we are identical in preference, action, and goals? One woman enjoys cooking and painting. Another writes and has closets that are the envy of the world. Then again, down the road four streets over another woman works hard at the home arts but is not particularly good at any of them… but her children don’t care, she is a marvelous teacher and has a beautiful relationship with her children.
I don’t think that we are supposed to water down the truths of the Word in order to make them platable to everyone in the name of ‘unity’. Sin is sin. We can’t call it a ‘disorder’ in order to make people more comfortable. Truth is truth. We cannot hide under the term ‘personal conviction’ when it is a mandate of God.
However, we need to be careful to not create madates that God never has. Our family has our convictions. Others have theirs. But I will never expect others to hold our convictions anymore than I want them to hold me to theirs. If the WORD has madated something, then it is not a personal conviction. It is a requirement of the Lord.
Sunday I read a scripture in a whole new light.
2 Timothy 4:3
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires,
It occured to me that perhaps this is why we have so many denominations. There was division in the first century. Paul and Peter didn’t agree! But now people don’t even bother to line up with one another. If you don’t like what is taught, start another group. I wonder if this has been done in an attempt at an appearance of unity. What would happen if people just sat down and read the Word together understanding that coming to an agreement on what the Word SAYS didn’t mean a requirement for how they live out that truth.
I am so sorry to see the constant division over things that are methods rather than the unification over principles.
Well, as promised, I read Patty at Home by Carolyn Wells. http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/10268
I can relate in so many ways to little Patty. The desire to succeed, the joy in doing a job well, and the pleasure derived in making others comfortable are universally appealing to any station of life or situation.
The book begins with father and daughter seeking a house. Others pull this way and that to encourage their own ideas of what the pair need to have perfect domestic tranquility but their ideas tend to fall short of the mark. Eventually they settle on leasing a home near to the Elliot family and hire a cook and a house maid.
Patty’s father gives her the chance to be their housekeeper in spite of her lack of age and experience. Eager to do him credit, Patty hosts a New Year’s Day party for the Aunt and Uncle and cousins she last lived with. Unfortunately her lessons in proportion are quickly forgotten in her desire to impress the family with her culinary skills. She creates several elaborate desserts that were, expectedly so, inedible.
Optimistically she tries again for their Tea Club and the result is not only even more dismal, but holds further humiliation for her. Encouraged by her good start (after the infamous New Year’s mess) her father arrived with guest in hand for dinner only to find the dining room a mess, dinner not ordered, and nothing in the house for the weekend’s meals!
Patty does finally learn this lesson and we’re encouraged that she will master this thing we call housekeeping. At the end of the month, her first true trial awaits. Upon arriving home from school she discovers a stack of bills. Eager to prove herself diligent in the household accounts, Patty records each amount in her ledgers. She slowly becomes disheartened as the amounts grow to double and treble the originally expected amounts.
After dinner she brings the books immediately to her father. This is where I am just amazed. Had it been me, I would have been tempted to bring the bills and books and everything half done and given up in despair. If I’d overridden that impulse, I CERTAINLY would have been tempted to wait until ASKED about the accounts. But, instead she shows her father the mess and already has plans for future economy in order to do her part to correct her mistakes.
Now her ideas are both impractical and slightly foolish, but they show a heart for taking responsibility for her actions that I find incredibly admirable. Her father listens to her ideas and promptly dismisses them. His idea is to write the month of as a lesson in experience and says, “we know experience is an expensive teacher.”
I loved that. No elaborate plans to make it up and no unnecessary scolding. She knew her faults, he accepted blame where he should, and showed where the tradesmen may have padded the bills a bit due to her age and inexperience.
The rest of the book is a delightful account of the girl’s life in Vernondale and shows how she truly enjoys each moment. What I’d like to comment on is the end. The book was written somewhere around 1909. Her cousin and another young woman are discussing their ambitions. One wants to be an author. The other, a grand singer. When asked about her ambitions she says she doesn’t have one. Her cousin remarks that it would be housekeeping.
Later as she discussed the conversation with her father, Patty says she felt awkward in the discussion because she didn’t have grand plans or dreams. Her father comments that she just wants to be a good housekeeper. She agrees at first but then she says something to the effect of, “But that’s only part of it. My ambition is to be a real womanly woman like Aunt Alice. I don’t think she ever had any grand ambitions but she has a family she loves and delights to serve and I want to be like her.”
Isn’t it interesting, that even in 1909 or thereabout a girl felt a little inadequate because she ‘just’ wanted to be a ‘housekeeper’. Her housekeeping didn’t mean doing all the cooking, cleaning, shopping, and things. It was the management of the household that she was referring to throughout the book. Yet even then it was already being looked down upon as something beneath her.
Why are we so surprised when our lives today are undervalued? For the last 100 years there have been subtle but deliberate messages instilled in our hearts that homemaking is simply what you do when you cannot do anything else. How very sad.
I did something unusual today. I bought candles. I rarely purchase them but I was picking up a gift for someone and a box teased my eyes. The box was labelled, “Yankee Scented Tea Lights- Lemon Zest”. I picked up the box and sniffed. Immediately I was carried back to my childhood. Those candles smelled just like our house always did when I got home from school.
I brought them home and promptly lit the first one. I’m thoroughly enjoying the scent. As I sat here typing out my last blog on housekeeping Patty Fairfield Style, it occured to me that with these zesty candles and a bottle of bleach, I could effectively have all the joy of my childhood home without the WORK. I could light a candle in every room but the bathroom, put a classic linen candle in the laundry area, and pour a bit of bleach in the sink every time I used the bathroom and voila! Instant clean without the work. What more could a busy mom ask for?
Unfortunately my overly analytical brain started whirling with the ramifications of that kind of thought process. How often do we do that? How often do we mask reality rather than change it? It’s like rose scented air freshener in an outhouse. It doesn’t smell like roses… it smells like rose tinged manure. EW. Jesus called it ‘whited sepulchres’. Basically it was saying, “Look, you can make a grave look nice and pretty but if you open it up it is still stinky and rotten in there.” (Well back when they allowed people to return to ‘dust’ it was.)
Am I really a strong Christian or do I just like to make it seem like I am? Am I really a good friend or do I keep up appearances so that I don’t have to deal with the guilt of my inadequacy? Am I truly a loving and patient mother or could my children tell other tales? How often do I try to make things look like they’re other than they really are? And WHY am I doing it. Sometimes I deliberately put on an act for myself in order to practice the behavior I want. I don’t consider that wrong. I’m talking about when I’m trying ot decieve myself or someone else.
You know though, not all of our appearances are our responsibility. If I am living my life as uprightly as I know how, and you have an inaccurate perception of me, I am not responsible for your mistake. It does neither one of us any good if I accept guilt for something that I have not done or have not implied. That would be ANOTHER kind of false appearance that is wrong.
So… it comes back to appearances. Is there something in your life that doesn’t ring true? Is it because you’re trying to deceive others or is it because you’re trying to make it a part of your make up? If someone else seems false in some area of their life, is it because they are trying to be false or hypocritical? Or, is it possible that you’ve made assumptions about them that aren’t accurate? Either way, what is the heart behind those appearances?
I have a favorite pasttime. I love to read old children’s books. Anything printed for children between 1750 and 1940 interests me. I especially prefer books written between 1890-1935 including many published by Cupples and Leon.
I know, I know. I’m an adult. I should ‘put away childish things’. Well, I don’t think so. I think that as a parent and a citizen concerned for the children of our day, it is good for me to be aware of good literature no matter whom the intended audience.
“So,” you assume, “You’re saying that we need to exhibit proportion in our reading choice.” Not really, but that’s probably a true statement as well. No, the book I was reading centered on the idea of proper proportions in our lives.
The book, Patty Fairfield by Carolyn Wells, is about a fourteen year old girl who is sent to spend the year equally divided between four aunts and their respective families. Her father admonishes her to pay attention to proper proportion shown or not shown in the families in order to see what kind of home they want to make at the end of the year. (They’ve always lived in boarding houses due to the death of Patty’s mother at an early age.)
http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/8456
The first home is very grand and elegant. The family is ostentatiously wealthy and concerned only with appearances and position. Patty sees the effect of constant boasting about the cost of things and the dissatisfaction with always wanting the best.
She leaves that home and moves to the second family. They are a very literary civic minded family who are extremely well regimented. Every moment of every day is well planned and engaged in intellectual pursuits. Committies of every kind and studies of every topic overrule any chance of interaction with family or personal interests that are not of a ‘higher order’.
The third family she visits is a happy-go-lucky bunch full of fun and frolic. They spend little time in any serious venture and their plans rarely come to fruition due to lack of ambition and diligence. So, while much more fun to be around than her previous cousins, she does find herself without a bed the first night, dinner another night, and a party must be gathered at the last minute due to no one mailing the invitations!
Finally she visits the last family and learns that there is a time and place for all of these things. That one can be wealthy without announcing it at every turn, one can have fun without ignoring duty, and education is not an end in and of itself.
She, of course, learns that the home she enjoyed the most was the one with ‘proper proportion’. I’d say, she enjoyed the home where they truly lived the injunction to have ‘moderation in all things’. In the end, she begs her father to settle in the town so that she may continue to learn how to be a proper housekeeper for him by the aunt who exhibited the qualities she wanted to emulate.
It was quite the eyeopener. Our home is rarely proportionate. We do exercise all things and in some we do have reasonable proportion but I do believe we swing like pendulums from heavy schooling to light, from many projects to few, from lots of entertainment to lots of work… In my quest to keep our schedules from being burdensome, I need to remember this encouraging little book.
I think I’ll also reread the second book and share some thoughts I remember from it.
Philippians 4: 5-9
5 Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near.
6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.
9 The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
How often do we read this passage without thinking about what it says. “Think like Pollyanna” is often what runs through our minds and then we go on our merry way without really digging into the depths of the truths of the passage. How often do we focus on certain words in verse eight like… “True” or “right” while ignoring “of good repute” and “pure” and “honorable”.
We’re told to have a gentle spirit. (Not just women, this passage is to men too.) We’re told to have a thankful, appreciative heart. We’re told to allow the peace of God cleanse us from an anxious spirit. Too often these are tossed aside for the ‘truth’ aspect of life. “Speaking the truth in love” is, in my opinion, one of the most misquoted and misapplied verses in scripture. It isn’t a license to say whatever you think no matter how unedifying as long as it is rooted or even smothered in truth.
We’re supposed to dwell on truth. We’re supposed to dwell on what is honorable. What if the truth is not honorable? Is it possible that we are not to be DWELLING upon those truths then? If it is true that a brother or sister in Christ is defrauding the body of Christ, just how honorable is it to keep that ugliness at the forefront of our minds and our conversations? How is this pure?
If a brother in Christ is having an affair, how is discussing this (however true) pure, of good report, or lovely? Yes, it is true. Yes, it needs to be discussed at certain times and places. (Church discipline and the like) Why, though, do we allow ourselves to dwell on it. Is this Biblical? Is it honorable?
I think it would be incredibly foolish and immature to pretend there is no ugliness out there. I do believe we are to uphold the highest standards in ourselves and in our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. I truly believe that to ignore sin is sometimes as wrong as participating in it. I am not calling for blinders to truth. That would be violating the scripture above.
But I wonder, can others tell, by our speech, message board posts, blogs, and such what is foremost on our heart? Do we constantly write or talk about the failures of ourselves or others? Are we focused on what is right in the world or the church or are we focusing on what is wrong? Where is our heart? “From the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.”
What is filling our hearts and therefore our speech?
Occasionally, it benefits a congregation for a pastor to give a ’state of the church’ address. Sometimes we need to hear where we’re failing or what is a serious problem in the world. Sometimes we need our eyes opened to the ugliness around us. If we don’t, we tend to splash in the muck for a while before we realize just how much the world has encroached upon us.
However, sometimes we need to just hear what TO do. What we’re supposed TO be doing. Sometimes we need a ‘the church is really making an impact here. Christian women are making such a large contribution to this or that. Christian men are sweeping the nation with that or the other. If all we hear is how we fail or are going to fail, what is the final result? If you catch more flies with honey than vinegar, why is it that so many of us are sporting permanent puckers from overdoses of vinegar?
I wonder what effect it would have in our homes if we became a bit more discerning about the truths we speak, the facts we share, and the things we truly dwell on. What if we ensured that we didn’t ignore unpleasant truths but we focused the majority of our concentration on those things which edify, encourage, and uplift?
Imagine the effects of sharing a preacher that we highly respect and have learned excellent truths from rather than always disecting another preacher’s faulty theology.
Imagine if we shared how helpful our new curriculum is rather than listing the faults and failures of every other curriculum on the market.
Imagine if we focused on the excellent qualities of our husbands and children rather than speaking the truth of their sinful selves.
We can’t ignore when a preacher mishandles the Word of God. That would be wrong. But must we drag it into every theological discussion? We would be wrong to hide what we see as flaws in curriculum when it could help a sister avoid a costly mistake in her homeschooling decisions but must every discussion of curriculum involve the inadequacies you see in every curriculum you despise? Finally, we often need help with our relationships and responsibilities to our husbands and children but do we give the world a terrible impression of our family because of our unbalanced discussions and lack of discretion.
Think on these things. Be anxious for nothing. Show appreciation and gratitude to the Lord. Show your gentle spirit.
Do we do it?
Our family loves scrabble. From the old fogie parents like Kevin and I, to our teens, tweens, and toddlers. From the moment a child knows an A from a Z they want to play.
Clearly, a student who can barely read is a lousy speller and doesn’t know a proper noun from a participle. The “no proper nouns” rule is clueless to them. If they see their sibling’s name on their tile ‘pew’, they want to use it. When the littles are playing, until they have a few years of spelling and grammar under their belts, we allow proper nouns. It’s against the official rules but it’s a little thing our family calls ‘grace’ and we allow it at times like this.
Another ‘house rule’ we play with a lot is that we use 9 letter tiles instead of 7. We do this because it’s easier to find a word when you have 9 tiles and they fit on the pew so we go for it. I’m generally the resident score keeper, dictionary, and helper. The “referee” so to speak.
My job is to approve words, rearrange tiles to help a little one find a word without giving them the words, and in general, make the game fun for everyone playing.
Occasionally, I’ll notice that an older child is avoiding a name. I’ll remind everyone that we don’t have to avoid proper names this round. Sometimes, a little one feels cheated when I say that but I remind them that they’re used to playing by official rules and we’ve changed those rules to make the game easier and fun for them and it is wrong for me not to remind those who are used to playing by official rules that they CAN do something different.
Sometimes, the older children will get frustrated that the board is getting clogged with 2, 3, and 4 letter words (of the innocent kind of course!). At this point I go around the board to see if I can find any words that are nice long ones to open up the playing field. If I find one, I sit back down and say, “I found a seven letter word on a triple word score” or whatever the facts are. They decide together whether having fun with the game is important enough for me to give that information.
This does have a disadvantage of course. If the one with the good word is an older child, they’re likely to see it and be able to play it even if the consensus is no. But this is how the game is played. We have the rules this way because otherwise it’s a frustrating game for this wide age discrepancy. They agree, when they pick up their letter pew, that they’re to handle themselves well if the rule changes put them to a disadvantage.
Occasionally I blow it. I make a word call that is wrong. I think a word doesn’t exist that does or does that doesn’t. The child counter challenges me and we look at it. I admit I was wrong and we move on. I’ve been known to forget that it’s SEVEN tiles that you have to use for the 50 point bonus not NINE. The rules are, you watch how I score in case I do forget. It’s your job to let me know if I forget a bonus or something. IF someone remembers that another player got a 50 point bonus and didn’t receive it, I’ll often grant the bonus anyway. Someone piping up like that is a good thing and I want it rewarded.
So what is the point of all of this? Sometimes we play games with altered rules. When we first started playing Scrabble this way, we had to modify the rules until we got them clear cut. We didn’t know how things worked in real play so we even had to change mid game a few times but we got the bugs worked out and it plays well now.
When people disappoint you, look at their history. Did they blow it? Do they have a history of it? Is it possible that things are not how they seem? What about those around you? Do they have the same problem with the person that you do? What do they gain by their actions? Did it benefit them in any way or is it truly a flub? And finally, if you are so angry and bitter as to feel the need to attack, is it really that they are untrustworthy or is there some other reason? Can it be possible that maybe you’re blowing something way out of proportion?
Finally, if you really think the person you’re having trouble with is truly doing something wrong, have you asked them? When my children think I made a bad call, they ask. “Mom, I don’t understand why you did that. Now they get to-”
Sometimes they’re right. I don’t always like to see I’ve botched it but that doesn’t mean I’m unwilling to. But othertimes, there is more to my decision than they could immediately see. Sometimes I can make them see that, other times I can’t. But because they have a lifetime of me being just about my decisions, they don’t assume that I did what I did to deliberately hurt them.
I like to think that if my children can show this kind of maturity, the majority of adults can too. I sure hope I’m right.
What if we, as wives, could be fired? What if our husbands could give us an evaluation and after ‘disciplinary action’ (Not physical… write ups, fines, something) let us go for non performance? How many of us would be fired? I’m certain I could be. No doubt in my mind. Shame on me.
I’m not talking about walking a perfect line. I’m not talking about never making a mistake. I’m talking about effort put forth, respect for authority, and reasonable productivity. Allowances for legitimate physical limitations would be required and understanding during weaker times of our ‘vessel’. I can picture it.
Quarterly review comes. The husband brings his notes to the meeting. “I’d like to tell you that your menus are impeccable, the kitchen is always spotless, and I appreciate how the bills are paid on time and the accounts so efficiently managed. Well done. I am concerned, however, with the way the children are allowed to get away with disrespect and defiance. I think you need to focus a little more attention on their well being and work on simpler meals for a time.”
Or… perhaps…
“I see how hard you are working at our goals. Well done. Please don’t put quite so much pressure on your self. Reaching the goal is important but not if you die just as you cross the line. You need to allow yourself more breaks and expect a little less perfection from everyone. I think you are becoming a bit harsh and bitter through all of this.
Maybe he’d say…
“What do you do all day? I come home and the school work isn’t finished. Dinner is rarely started. The housework is done in a slip-shod manner and the children are squabbling. Your hobbies are left everywhere and unfinished. I cannot see that you’ve accomplished anything and now I have to work a double shift. One at work, another at home. I think it is time for you to put more effort into this family. If you need help, I’ll do what I can. If I can’t help, you’re welcome to get insight from others but I expect to see a little more effort made.
I don’t want to dwell on what my husband would say yesterday. I want to make today a day he’d praise. I’m ashamed of myself. I believe I’ve allowed the fact that I can’t be fired to blind me to my faults.
I can do everything I need to do. I have enough hours in the day. I also have enough hours to do most of what I want to do in addition to my responsibilities. Some people binge on sweets when they’re down or out of sorts. I binge on laziness. Shame on me.
I don’t want my husband to ever feel like he’s ’stuck’ with me. I want him to be BLESSED by me. I want him to, when men are grousing about their wives, think “I am so thankful I married Chautona.” It’s my responsibility to give him reason to do so.
Now, before anyone jumps on the “Why is it always the wife who must do xyz? Why didn’t you write about husbands getting fired?”
Well, because I can’t change my husband. (Wouldn’t want to 99% of the time!) I can’t make him do what I think he should. Men are supposed to read the Word and do it. They’re supposed to be taught by the pastors and elders how to love their wives and children and give themselves up for them. My place, as a woman, is to do my part regardless of whether or not my husband does, and to encourage other women to stand right before the Lord in their own actions, not focusing on the faults of others.
Picture life on a farm in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. (For an example of what I mean, read The Ox Cart Man by Barbara Cooney and Donald Hall) In winter they worked indoors. They made baskets and quilted, knitted and whittled. They worked diligently but the work wasn’t as physically demanding as…
Spring. The snow melted away, they worked the land digging earth, planting, plowing, weeding, and breaking livestock. It was good for their muscles to get a good workout after months of more fine motor skills and mental work. But eventually they moved into…
Summer. Butchering and maintenance become a priority. Kind of a combination of mental and physical. The routines change. The days feel longer and lazy. More relaxation occured probably than any other time of the year. Of course for them, relaxation was fishing or berry picking! Eventually the hot days begin to cool and gives way to…
Autumn. Harvest. More physical outdoor work. Bring the crops in, stock the storehouses, prepare for winter. Everything is focused on preparation for the long cold winter months.
Our lives are more constant today. Every week we do pretty much the same thing year round with the exception of shoveling snow or cleaning the swimming pool. Our general work doesn’t change much. Each week we have a very similar routine as to the week before, and the one before that, and the two dozen before that.
I wonder if that is why we have so much burnout. I wonder if we don’t give ourselves self-imposed monotony. I wonder if we focused on different things in different seasons, if we’d look eagerly at a change of primary work outside the basics that have never changed. (People have always had to prepare food daily and clean up afterward. People have to clean clothes no matter what time of the year and certain housework is done 52 weeks of the year.)
I wonder if this is the answer to my concern on how to prioritize my goals. Perhaps I need to focus on when is the best time of the year to work on this or that goal. Perhaps with a bit of variation knowing that it’ll be some time before I do this or that thing again, I’ll appreciate the job more and do a better job knowing that in time I’ll have to put it aside for another goal.
