Of Dealing With Disappointment

"Choose you this day whom you will serve..." ... Joshua 24:15

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So I'm still redecorating, and I tweaked our living room again, but switched it all back to the way you saw it on Saturday. When two of your end tables just won't fit anymore, you must admit that. You must find places for them in other rooms or give them away, lest the overcrowded-ness  irk you every single minute.

Anyway. It's super-rare that I order something online in a wrong size (because I quadruple check everything), but after opening the box of shelves I'd picked-up from Home Depot, I realize I'd done just that. My half-circle shelves for beside our kitchen sink would over-stretch the cabinets a whole inch and a half. 

Long story.

Oh, but how powerful was the temptation to install them anyway! ("Maybe no one will notice...") Almost did impatience persuade me to give-in. But no, I decided I'll hang them in our office because 1.) There is no other place, 2.) We surely need shelves in there, 3.) And I don't believe in returning things unless they're all wrong and super expensive, which these certainly were not.

But really, I felt quite annoyed with myself and having to order and wait again for new (smaller) shelves, not to mention making another trip to Home Depot, though yeah, they'll deliver to my home--for 'only' $24. Good grief. Can you say "obvious-ploy-to-get-you-into-the-store-to-buy-more-stuff"?

But am I complaining? Ok, a little. But mostly, I can recognize a test when I see one--and this was a test. 

So I told my head to be patient and not so blame-y. Then as I assembled the shelves on our carpet while yet one more episode of House played, something on that show calmed me even more. It helped me up my grade a whole letter, I think. 

Did you ever see the episode where a certain semi-main character dies because of something involving House and his drinking? (Don't want to give anything away, so I'll remain vague.) Anyway, right before this (barely-conscious) character dies, another person says, "It's not ok. Why aren't you angry?"

To which the dying person said, "That's not the last feeling I want to experience."

Oh, that's good. 

And for me, annoyance, impatience and disappointment aren't feelings I want to experience on this beautiful sunny August day. And it is a choice, you know.

So there you go.



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"Anybody can get negative, bitter, blame God and lose their passion.

That’s easy. But if you want to pass the test, if you want God to take you 

to a new level, you’ve got to be a warrior."   ...Joel Osteen


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On late Saturday, I placed much of my Fiestaware collection in the hutch and hung that little green shelf beside it.


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Oh! Another blessing from Dollar Tree. I found On Hummingbird Wings there yesterday. Very cool book, indeed.


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