The Journey of Parenthood…

Give Me a Boring Life

For years one of my favorite quotes has been from Jackie O: “I don’t want a good life, I want an interesting life. I want to live, not just merely exist.”

I am a person who loves to plan. Loves the anticipation of a trip a few months away. I live in the future more than I live in the present. Making a life filled with experiences. Fun. Adventures. A calendar overloading with future memories to be made.

My life has always been interesting. I relate so much to what Jackie O said because it’s how my life has been. I’m the girl with a story. The one who you probably think is lying but who really isn’t. Random bad luck, crazy chance happenings. You name it, I’ve probably experienced it. Reading that quote helped me to embrace the wild rollercoaster ride. To hold on tight and let the ride take me wherever it was meant to go.

I’ve lived. I’ve had my interesting tales. And now, I just want to “merely exist.” Because merely existing? It’s those little everyday moments. The laundry. The snotty kid noses. It’s the days where the biggest issue I have is how to handle my 5 year old’s mood. I just want the good life. The life of daydreaming about the future without worry. Knowing my family is healthy. Experiencing the now without being overwhelmed by all that surrounds me.

A few days ago I had my first normal day in a long, long time. No crisis. No sickness. No medical issues. No appointments. No billing issues. Just a normal day. I cleaned my house. I cooked dinner. And I sat on the floor and played and tickled my toddler. All I want to do is hold onto that day and replay it over and over. Let everyday be that boring, that simple.

We so easily get caught up in filling our days that we miss the things that are most important. We have such a tight schedule that we aren’t able to just sit and be still. It’s impossible to relax when you have a mile long list of things you “should be” doing running through your mind. It’s hard to slow down, sometimes it feels simply impossible.

Finding contentment isn’t just about being at peace when life is smooth sailing, it’s being able to harness that peace when life is chaos. Find the good in each moment. The smile from your child when you tuck him in. That treat you enjoy when the kids go to bed. The unexpected compliment from a stranger. Hold onto the positive things in life, because even when it feels like everything is crashing down, there is still so much good.

And most of all enjoy the boring days. The normal ones. The ones where you are blessed with the opportunity to just “merely exist.” Life will continue to throw curves our way. That roller coaster may come off the tracks at times. Hang on to those simple moments, soak them in and savor them. They are the moments that a happy life is made of.

And as for my favorite quote? I’m retiring Jackie O and going with Robert Brault: “Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realized they were the big things.”

Emily Parker
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