But I wanted

While the kids were picking out their clothes this morning, I found myself staring out the skylight in my room. "The last thing I want," I grumbled to myself, "is another cold rainy day."

With two young children in the house, my days are punctuated with cries of "I get to choose!" and "But I wanted...!" The desire to control our lives runs deep.

When I let myself get wrapped up in whether or not I am getting my own way, it's hard to notice anything else. Like the gentle patter of the rain, or the patterns it makes as it hits the glass. Like the bundle of sticks high up in the oak tree that is a home for one of our neighbor squirrels. Like the healthy, happy kids making each other giggle across the hall. Like God, ever at my elbow, offering to show me the beauty in even this gray and soggy day.