“Curiosity endows the people who have it with …a
serenity…which springs from their cheerful willingness to let life take the
form it will.” ~Alistair Cook, British/American journalist, television
personality and broadcaster (1908-2004)
Sharon found
herself tossing and turning. She hadn’t been sleeping well since her Dad had
gotten sick. Sometimes she would fall asleep immediately only to come wide
awake an hour later. Other times she slept in fits and starts, but never really
lapsing into a sound sleep. This had been one of those nights.
Sometime in the
middle of the night Sharon had nodded off. Now she found herself skirting the
edges of consciousness. Was she dreaming or was she awake? An odor assaulted
her nostrils. Was something burning? No, not burning; cooking! Her eyes popped
open. She distinctly smelled roasted turkey.
Sharon rolled
over and stared at the alarm clock. 5:55 glowed red. Why was she smelling
turkey at 6:00 in the morning, she wondered? She rolled onto her shoulder, swung
her feet out over the side of the bed and sat up. Slipping on her favorite
fuzzy slippers, Sharon wrapped her robe tightly around her. She crossed her
arms and headed for the bedroom door.
In the hallway,
the smell of turkey was even stronger. She heard someone in the kitchen
downstairs. Assuring herself that no self respecting intruder would be cooking;
she descended the stairs and made her way to the kitchen door. Light spilled
from the open doorway.
Taking a deep
breath, Sharon stepped into the kitchen. To her surprise she found her mother
at the kitchen table; a cup of steaming coffee and a magazine in front of her.
“What are you doing here, Mum?” she asked. Her mother looked up with start.
“I’m cooking turkey,” she replied, so glibly it was almost humorous. “Yes, but its 6:00 am,” Sharon replied. “And
it smells like it’s almost done.”
“It won’t be
done for another hour,” her mother responded, taking a slurp of her coffee.
Silence reasserted itself. Finally, Sharon’s mother put her coffee down, closed
the magazine and looked up at her daughter. The question, “What’s going on,”
was written in worry on Sharon’s face.
“Sit down,”
Sharon’s mom said finally. After Sharon was seated, her mother took her by the
hand. “I’ve been worried sick about your father,” she began. “We have this big
family dinner planned for today and I got it in my head I needed to start the
turkey early so it would be done in time.” “What time did you put it in the
oven?” Sharon asked. “3 am,” her mom answered.
“3 am!?” Sharon exclaimed.
Her mother raised her palm outward to signify STOP. “What are we going to do?”
she asked anyway. “Well, I imagine we’re going to invite everyone over for
breakfast,” her mother responded with a half smile. “How are we going to do
that?” Sharon stood. “Well, first you need to get on the phone and call
everyone to let them know meal time has changed to 8:00 am.” While you’re doing
that I need to see how many eggs I have.” “We may need to ask folks to bring
some things with them… Bread for toast, for starters.” With that her mother
rose and headed for the ’fridge.
Sharon spent the
next hour calling family members, trying to explain why they were having a
turkey breakfast at 8:00 am. Most of the family arrived on time except her
younger brother who was always late for everything anyway. Everybody
contributed to the impromptu buffet which turned out surprisingly well.
The table was
regularly replenished as people added items or ordered out. Even a pepperoni
pizza appeared at the table. The family supped and visited well into the
afternoon, returning to the table at their leisure.
Later, Sharon
and her mom found themselves once again at the kitchen table, each with a mug
of coffee; this time with a bit of Irish whiskey in it for fortification. “This
worked out really, really well,” Sharon remarked.
Her mother
smiled for a moment. “If your Dad’s illness has taught me anything, it has
taught me that we don’t have control over most things in our life. I’ve always
been a control freak, but lately I’ve learned that I’m better off to let things
unfold. It is there that I find peace.”
We live in a
world where “managing” our lives has become a primary goal for many of us.
Phones, cars, computers, consumer services, and a variety of other tools promise
us a more convenient life. Seminars and self-help programs promise to help us
manage our time, manage our lives, and get what we want out of it.
But try as we
might, life is pretty much unmanageable. “Life happens,” regardless of our
attempted, well-intended interventions. People, bosses, friends, enemies,
spouses, and strangers are unpredictable. The unexpected seems to occur as
often as the expected.
Some would say
this is a very pessimistic view of the world. Perhaps instead it is a key to
peace of mind. Stewardship reminds us that we are to use what we are given,
wisely and well. The unspoken factor in all of this is that God does not give us
everything at once, like a stack of poker chips to be won or lost on the roll
of the dice or a hand of cards.
Life unfolds,
constantly providing us with new vistas and viewpoints. Sharon’s mom, in the
midst of her husband’s serious illness, found joy in letting a happy accident
run to its logical course.
Let life unfold
as it will. You might be surprised what God has in store for you!
Dear God, remind
me I am called to experience life, not manage it.
“When
life gets too hard to stand, kneel, and let go, and let God take over.” ~Nishan
Panwar, Facebook philosopher.
©2014 James E. Carper. All rights reserved.
