I walk through the front door and settle into the quiet peace of my house. Sunlight spills through the windows and there are only soft little sounds, the hum of the refrigerator, the clink of the guinea pigs' food dish, the calling of birds from the back yard. Aaahhh.
I love my family, I adore them, but getting the three of them off to school each morning is high drama. One or more of them is always running late, or looking for something, or dragging their feet. I feel like the support crew, prepping breakfasts, stuffing lunches into lunchbags, homework into backpacks, band instruments into the trunk. I find shoes, fill water bottles, sign paperwork. And drive. Even if I'm not entirely awake.
I love Garrison Keillor's spoken work. He's done a very funny rendition called the Family Hamlet, a six minute adaptation of the plot. In it, the pastor advises Hamlet to "Marry Ophelia. Settle down and raise a family." Oh, Hamlet protests, but I want drama. Swordfights and nobility and tragic passions. "Oh, that's okay then," the pastor reassures him. "You'll find all the dark passion you want just in getting your kids off to school." I laugh aloud every single time I hear that bit. It is SO true.
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