My To-Do List

I went and did this thing called “getting a little older.”

It seems everyone is doing it.

It’s certainly not a fashion statement – this thing called getting older.

But I can’t help it.

On my birthday last year I happened to ask of my husband, “What’s up?”

And he told me it was my age.

Then he laughed at how funny he can be.

So I went shopping and when I came home he asked of me, “What’s up?”

And I told him it was his credit card bill.

Then I laughed at how funny I can be.

Moments later I found my shopping list

right there on the kitchen counter

and it told me what I was supposed to buy while I was out.

 And there beside my lost little paper was yet another piece of paper:

The to-do list I had jotted.

Poor little thing. Neglected indeed.

Did the phone just ring?

My friend says she needs to stop over.

I tell her to please wait an hour;

with laughter in her voice, she tells me she knows why.

It seems the cleaning fairies show up right before company comes,

and they’re lickety-split fast when they need to be.

Please call and tell me you’re coming over

so we can marvel at what’s about to happen.

The cleaning spirit in me cannot be fooled into action

by pretending someone will soon be over.

I really need a friend to put me on notice.  

I say to myself, “Oh, I’m having company?”

and my legs move faster than ever.

My mind makes decisions rather quickly.

The dishes find a spot in warm soapy water,

The dust rag makes a high-speed appearance.

The sweeper turns on, and the laundry is sorted.

But never fear, for after you arrive, I know what’s important.

We’ll sit and talk and just be together.

What do you mean when you say you can’t stay?

Don’t you want to see how the cleaning fairies just made my day?

Stay a few minutes; I’ll give you a tour.

Surely don’t tell me that you’d find it a bore.

Well, if you’re heading out, so am I.

Let’s go on a road trip and find a place that serves homemade pie.

We will laugh as we talk about the messiness of life.

We can share about the dreams we once had

and how some of them really came true!

Although “get older” was never on our to-do list,

it’s something that happened before we could know it.

The dusting of oak baseboards made the list.

The windows and house need a huge powerwash.

The car needs waxed, and the landscape doesn’t clean itself.

And, oh, that garage!

If I had my life to live over, with a rake in my hand

and old shoes on my feet,

I’d sing and whistle with no feelings of defeat.

The outdoor air we breathe – truly a gift from above.

Butterflies and starlings are decorating my yard,

and I just scared a chipmunk more than he scared me.

I found the craziest bug there ever could be.

Come over here quick so you can see!

He’s making a loud clicking noise – he must be a click beetle?

With sun on my shoulders and pen in my hand,

it’s time to sit down and write while I can.

The wonderment of life. Who knew?

How many more beetles are out there for me to find?

And moths and dragonflies now on my mind?

Life is full of work, and life is full of play.

Can we take our work and make it into play?

If that’s something I can do, please sign me up.

My hands may turn wrinkly from all that water,

and my knees will speak up with a familiar old creak.

But somewhere inside me, I can find a song

and carry a tune in that proverbial old bucket.

It’s a wonderful thing: Knowing God listens to our hearts

and He hears our spirits sing.

He’s the Waymaker Who never stops working.

Even when we don’t see it.

Even when we don’t feel it.

Here we are – just passing through – yet we’re in awe

of the world in which we live:

those serendipitous moments we can never explain,

the wonderment of life on earth,

and the joy that’s there for the taking.