The Nitty Gritty of Our Daily Lives

Last Saturday morning I sat in an outbreak session at Idea Camp. The panel of six individuals sat with a rather large room full of "bloggers" for about an hour discussing the responsibilities that come with blogging. The panel, who have like thousands of readers, were there to answer questions and help discuss various aspects of daily story-telling. There I sat, with my small following of 22 people, totally in awe of all of those people who have such a huge responsibility regarding what they say, and how they say it. I too, even with my small little readership, feel responsible for what I write and how I write it.

One young mother, who was wearing her sleeping infant via a very lovely multicolored sling, said that she liked to hear the "Nitty Gritty" stories when she was reading other people's blogs. She wanted to hear the real stuff about people's lives..."mix it up a little." And that has caused me to re-think about what I say and how I say it. Mostly, I feel as though I should aways be aware of my motives as I write or attempt to tell a story about my family. I've always desired to be an encourager with my little blog...and not fuss a lot about daily life. But the feelings that were left in my heart this morning after our "getting-up-and-getting-the-girls-ready-for-school" activities, may be worth sharing as a bit of the "nitty gritty."

Let me preface this story with the fact I'm still reeling from all the Idea Camp information that is slowly being processed by my rather simple-minded brain. It's more like the information has moved from my mind and settled into my heart, and it's in the process of completely overtaking my spirit. I, along with many others, were emotionally moved by a video titled *1800 Seconds*. Everybody over the age of 16 (I think?) had been encouraged to view it before they left the conference. But, to view it you had to go stand outside in the cold wind and wait to be loaded into the back of a box truck. I was ever so thankful that I was one of the last to load and I was able to see a bit of light coming in through a little crack where the truck door was pulled down hard enough to rattle every one's unsettled nerves. Being quite claustrophobic I would have probably had a mini meltdown if I'd been plopped down on the floor near the front or middle of all the others. I had imagined that there would be chairs inside that little truck, but there we all were sitting on the floor, squished together like a tin of sardines...and what followed with the video leads me to tears even now.

So, here's my story.
Yesterday, another adoptive mom, who has become a facebook friend of mine, but whom I've never actually met in person, posted information about a Chinese girl who needs a family to step forward and adopt her before she loses her international adoption ability when she turns 14 this September. It mentions in Qiong's write up that she was abandoned when she was two years old. Some people found her sitting on the curb waiting for her parents to return. She wasn't able to walk because her little legs were crooked (related to a later diagnosis of rickets). It goes on to tell of her growing up in an orphanage. It mentions that she wants to be a painter when she grows up. And like so many other orphans, her greatest desire is to have a family. She has watched friend after friend leave the orphanage with parents....(breaks my heart to think of this!) Qiong's story moved me to advocate for her on my Facebook page.

After reading this story, I immediately thought of the video I mentioned above. Some orphaned children are sold into slavery...they are hauled many miles and hours away in trucks like the one I sat so uncomfortably in for a mere 30 minutes...with no light or food or place to relieve themselves. That would be a terrifying experience for anybody--adult or child!!! I thought of what Qiong's life would be like if a family doesn't come forward for her...what it could end up like when she is forced to leave the orphanage. How will she survive?

So, this morning when my daughters decided to start fussing about the clothes I chose for them to wear to school, and when one of them came to me complaining about how their two year old brother was being mean, I just lost it!!!!! I won't tell you exactly what I said, but I reminded them of the fact they had two parents who adopted them so that we could be the ones to love them and care for them, protect them, and make decisions for them, so they wouldn't be left to themselves in some orphanage in China! Yes, I eventually ended up in the kitchen yelling at the child who refuses to wear any clothing with buttons on it. About that time, Brian came down the stairs and requested that I afford our two daughters some grace.
At that point, the guilt set in. I was able to calm myself down and shut my mouth, which had gotten way out of control. And, yes, I am ashamed and I will apologize to my daughters this afternoon when I bring them home from school. They, like me, don't deserve grace, but they will get some today.

So, here's my question....Would that young mother accept this as a worthy "nitty-gritty-daily-life" story?

Deb