You know how we run our lives expecting that all will be well when we get all our ducks in a row or something. We plan endlessly expecting a perfect life. Save against that – insure against this. We roll along thinking I will get over this hump and solve this problem and sort this situation out and then it will be better. Better forever. I will be THERE. And then it isn’t better and we are nowhere and we are endlessly shocked. Like a mouse in a maze we keep racing along looking for the magic door that will lead us to a perfect life.
I think we have it back to front, inside out, upside down. 
There is no perfect life. There is not even a perfect day. Unless we realise that a Perfect life is FULL of bumps and jiggles. This is what life is. It is meant to be this way. Fat days and bad hair days. Running for trains or missing planes. Lost bookings and reluctant plumbers. Not enough straw or mould in the hay. Fences slowly falling and missing chicks. Money troubles and killing frosts and children gone off the rails and dogs dying and illness in the cattle and not one truck that runs and coughing cats and tires deflating. Pot holes in the track and air full of bean dust. I think THIS IS the norm. This is the way it is. This is an ordinary day. No need to complain about this day.
I think I need to wake up and work faster and say to each problem – Yes, Excellent, thank you. How can I fix this – then I/we spin to another corner and say again Yes, Excellent, thank you – what is the problem! I can do this. Then do it again. And again. Just Shut Up and Deal with it. There is no perfect. This is how our lives are. Fast, furious and sometimes life threatening. Heart breaking. Good. This is the way it is meant to be. These are the normal days. Good mean pushy days.Spit in your eye days. Days that challenge and stretch us. Days that deserve a drink at dusk.
A perfectly calm day without troubles is most unusual and should be celebrated! A perfectly calm day with no-one coughing and no-one dying and no mean decisions and no ice or snow and no bendy tree winds – These are unusually wonderful and should be celebrated.
Like yesterday. Charlotte the book illustrator in Milan liked the new words in the childrens book. I created an address book of 86 people who want to write for the next Fellowship book – Letters For my Baby Girl. (if you did not get your letter let me know) The big pigs and the little pigs wandered about the fields eating grass. The calves and sheep wandered about the other fields eating grass. There were no skunk hits or mink sightings. The chickens laid 11 eggs. I collected four buckets of pears and did not burn the dinner. It rained but only a little and it was not too cold. I visited the Old Codger, chatted with The Matriarch (who had kindly done all my laundry) and collected bags of vegetables for the pigs from the local store. The kittens got fatter, all the chicks were still in the loft and Poppy did not escape. It was a good day.
My good calm day was special and I knew it. Unusual. Worthy of celebration.
I hope you have one of these good calm days today. Just don’t be afraid of the crappy days. They are perfectly normal. Just say: Excellent – Good Now I know what the problem is – I will find the solution. Taking control of the problem is power. Don’t give it away. Push – all the time. Be the best You can Be. Always. And remember everyones best is different. Then embrace and relax into those gentle calm days. And charge your batteries.
Love your friend on the farmy,
celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
106 responses to “A moments respite”
“There is no perfect life. There is not even a perfect day. Unless we realise that a Perfect life is FULL of bumps and jiggles. This is what life is. It is meant to be this way.” I needed this reminder. Thanks.
Everything made sense until I came to the pumpkins:)
Wonderful philosophy and so true. Congratulations on a calm day. As you say, gratitude is needed when this happens.
And this post is the first of yours in the new letters book, right?
(So far so good here – one more doc and his tests, then we see where we are. But finally after years of saying, “you don’t want be too old to do anything or on the way out and regretting that less time wasn’t spent on X and more wasn’t spent on the people around and what you really wanted to do”, I am hopeful there will be re-evaluation and change. Society lures adults away with nonessential glitter and misleading bright lights. Sometime it takes a shock. But the old phrases “Don’t put off tomorrow, what you can do today” and “Make good use of the time you are given, because you just never know” – well, you never listen when you are young…so that why it was determined there must be a bunch of the old ladies/elders to nag? (giggles)
Great post C. (and always delight in the little things…even cold wet muddy days – it could always always be worse!!!!)
Thanks Celi for your wise and timely advice. I was going through a series of “when this happens I can…” but on the other side of ‘this happening’ there was nothing different. I need to project a bit more even-ness on my life. Sending a grateful hug. Cheers Sarah : o )
I’m so glad you had a calm day, and got to the pears before Poppy!
I found this a very inspirational post, and comforting. 🙂
People try way too hard – me too, from time to time! Trying to smooth the wrinkles out like ironing when I was a kid. And you are right. For all the advice, yours is quite practical and matter of fact – very Zen – just accept life on its own terms and get on with it! Yes!
I love everything about you Miss C. And to this post I yell, “AMEN!”