The Things I Carry
The idea for really taking into serious account "the things I carry" came to me on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. I was attending a family brunch, and my daughter handed me a somewhat puffy paper towel.
"Can you put this in your purse?" she asked.
"Sure," I said. "What is it?"
"My retainer." (Um, YUCK.) "I don't want to wear it for the family pictures," she explained. Ah, the family photos before breakfast.
I tucked her lovely packet into a safe side zipper in the interior of my bag and tried to forget.
Suddenly, my son appeared before me.
"Mom, can you put my socks in your purse?"
(Um, WHAT?)
"Which socks and why?"
"Dad says I have to take off the white socks I wore with my loafers."
"You wore white socks with your loafers?"
"I forgot the right color dress socks."
"Dad is right. I will meet you by the bathroom." Two minutes later, I deposited the small bundle of laundry into my, thankfully, large purse.
Walking back into the dining room, I am greeted by my daughter.
"Can you put these in your purse?"
Are you kidding me?
She held out two hair bands.
I opened up the bag and let her drop them in.
Last year, I read a book called The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien. This book was about soldiers fighting in Vietnam and the actual items they carried with them. A bible. A photograph. A backpack. Of course, it also was about those things that are carried that cannot be seen or touched. Emotions, fear, pain, guilt, love.
I know that we all carry things seen and unseen, but my purse has been on my mind all weekend. It is, perhaps, time, to lighten the load. Shall we take a look?
I am currently carrying the following items, every day, no more and no less:
One large zipper wallet, containing cards, cash, coins, and tiny lucky ladybug
One pink pouch with receipts and holiday coupons, because I'm a girl who loves a deal
Two wet wipes
One check book
Hand lotion
Hair brush
Headphones
Inhaler
Antibacterial gel
Nail file
Motrin
Three pens
Phone
Keys
One flower pin for sudden accessorizing
Two sparkly bobby pins
Two aforementioned hairbands
Face powder
Lipstick
Two lip glosses
One perfume
One lip gloss and perfume combo
Carmex
Altoids
Two migraine relief medicines
One pair of earrings
One aforementioned pair of socks
One beautiful drawing given to me by my niece
There's a theory that if given a smaller plate, one would eat a smaller meal. I'm thinking that I need a smaller purse.
Finding a small purse is the fun part, at least for me. And I'll bet we could all easily empty our bags and briefcases and feel an instant weight lifted. But I wonder about the other things we carry. Those emotions, fears, worries, battles and fights that we can't seem to put down. Is it time to give them to God, so that we can feel a TRUE weight taken off our shoulders, allowing us to walk more lightly through this holiday season?
Consider lightening both loads, and I will, too. The things we carry don't define us, but they can both describe us and weigh us down. Maybe it's time to stop digging through so much stuff to find what's really inside. Maybe it's time to just lighten up.
You hit the nail on the head for me. Thank you for spelling it out in a wonderful and clear message. Hugs...
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