Meeting Glennon…. AGAIN!?!

You guys would have been SO proud of me.  I was totally only KINDA a goober when I got to meet Glennon last night, nothing at ALL like last time.  I only got there an hour early instead of two, and even brought a book so I wasn’t inclined to talk every single person’s ear off.  Although, the book really only ended up being a tool to facilitate my eavesdropping on anything and everything I could hear Sister and Anna (Jack’s, the little boy that died in the flash flood, mom) talking about.  (I’m mildly concerned for myself, that I’m justifying listening in on their convo, and referring to them like we’re best friends and what not.)  Clearly I was slightly star struck…. again.

Glennon was fabulous, as always, giving hysterical and helpful encouragement to all of us ladies.  My favorite was when she told all of us mom’s to just stop it with the mom guilt.  She reminded us that our parents and grand parents didn’t even know where their kids WERE 90% of the time.  She had us dying when she asked what self respecting adult TRULY WANTS to play hide and seek, chutes and ladders, or dolls All. DAY. LONG.   Thank you JESUS!   I LOVE it when I get to hang out in a room full of women and there is applause after such a statement, its like a wave of freedom comes crashing through the room and we all feel a little more at peace today telling our kids to get outside and find something to do.   That weight that builds up as I look at all the fun Pinterest projects and see the pics and posts of other mom’s engaging in all of that, believing the lie that those mom’s play with their kids ALL day long, and LOVE it…. gone!   I’ve got about an hour or 2 a day, where I enjoy the frivolous play that’s inherent in childhood.  Tickle wars.  Fort making.  Story telling. Game Playing.  Then I’m done.  It’s not fun anymore.  They know it and I know it.  It doesn’t mean I love them any less… it means I’m an adult, with responsibilities.

This sign is on display in my house.
IMG_1945
It’s 100% true.  However, that sign doesn’t say ANYTHING about being a good wife or a good person.  I can be a great mom, and a horrible wife and person.  Glennon also talked about finding balance in life.  She explained that we feel the pressures pushing on us, to be mom, wife, sister, employee, volunteer, etc…. and we feel like we need to constantly be pushing back to relieve the tension.  She pointed out, however, that the definition of balance is to have opposing forces pushing on an object at equal velocity, holding it together, in balance.  If we just feel the tension, and embrace it, we can be at peace knowing its love…. It is love that have our kids pursuing our every waking moment attention and makes our husbands desire us.  The tension from work, whether it be in the home, at work, both, or volunteering, is a result of being valued for the input we provide.  We are wanted, loved, and treasured by so many.  It is a blessing, not a curse, to find ourselves in the positions we do, we just need to be ever present IN them, so we can identify when shifts to that balance occur.  We are uniquely equipped to understand the different degrees of tension each area of our life can endure, and for how long, so we can respond to each shift and regain our balance.

After reading my book, I was the last person in line for the night.  To be honest I kinda did that on purpose, because I didn’t actually HAVE a copy of her book with me?!?  I’ve already bought 3 of them to read and share, and didn’t want to buy one more.  SO….. I brought my shutterfly family picture book, because I’d put the picture of her and I in it from last year and wanted to see if she would sign that.  I was a little mortified, going to a book signing WITHOUT the actual book, however Glennon LOVED that she was in our ‘family book’, it was so fun!

The craziest part happened on my way out.  Sister was taking down some of the decorations, and I thanked her for all that they do.  She deferred the compliment, and then told me, and I quote “You have such a calming presence”…..   Me?!?  Calming?!?  Must have been all that ‘book reading’ she thought I was doing while I was eavesdropping 😉

IMG_1944

 

2 comments

  1. kacinpoint says:

    I <3 <3 <3 everything about this! BTW: I went there the next day to see if the post-its were still up. Evidently, Glennon took them. For a second I thought, "Bummer!" But then I thought, "How cool?! Glennon has a little piece of paper with my name on it that says I kicked cancer's ass." So proud to be your friend, AMAZING Person!

Leave a Reply to Julie Cancel reply