Back at the County Fair
What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you?
Luke 9:25 MSG
Tuesday morning, and we're halfway through the county fair already.
I love the fair! I also do not love the fair. It's one of those ongoing, internal struggles.
I love seeing my kids try new and hard things! But that also means lots of opportunities for disappointment. It's life lessons I want my girls to learn, but the conversations as follow up are exhausting.
I love working together as a family! But it's also pretty hard on a marriage (at least mine!). The livestock shows lead to at least a few misunderstandings, and maybe an uncomfortable silence or two (or three) when we disagree about how to handle the girls' reactions to winning or losing.
I love all of the people! But they don't always bring their best selves. And I don't always show up with my best self, either. We could talk about trying to park the car or plugging in the extension cord, but it wouldn't be a great use of our time.
I love the food! But my body says that the amount of "fried" and "sugar" isn't what it's looking for. And I already know that; but it's only available at the fair so I NEED to eat it!
I guess where my struggle comes is in forgetting that it's just the fair.
When I begin each event with a deep breath and a moment of gratefulness for just being there, I find I'm a lot less likely to get swept away in all that 'other stuff.' Because really, I do love the fair- the community it builds, the opportunities it gives, and the memories it makes.
Four days left and I think they'll be good ones, because that's what we're going to make them.
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