I decided not to blog today for the following reasons:

So as you might imagine, I am in no mood to inspire the world today.  You’re on your own.  See you tomorrow.

Tired of praying the routine bedtime prayers with my kids, I began reciting Our Father with them.  Slowly.  Line-by-line.  Even taking a couple of nights to talk about what each line means, and why Jesus said we should pray in this manner.  Many people dismiss those who pray the Pater Noster because Jesus said, “Pray in this manner.”  True: he did not say, “Repeat after me.”

Whatever.  If you get an example from say, God, you should try to get a handle on what he’s trying to communicate.

Nate, the eldest son,

The road was busy, and I had been tailgated for seven miles.  I know this because I had been counting.  There was a line of cars in front of me.  We weren’t in a hurry; it was Saturday and the to-do list was mostly done.  That’s when it all began.  Tailgator crossed the double yellow into oncoming traffic in order to get one car ahead of me in the line up.  I slammed on the brakes and moved as far as I could to the right so that the poor fellow in the opposite lane could live to see Sunday.

this is not a photo from actual events described in this blog post.

What an idiot.  Then she does it again.  Double yellow, motor cycle in the oncoming lane and she pulls out right in front of him and passes one car in order to be next in line. 

Last night I attended my eldest son’s band camp concert.  The night before that both of my boys had baseball games.  In an hour I’ll be leaving to go to yet another baseball game.  Next weekend the daughter has a ballet recital.  Being a dad (or a mom) takes a lot of time.

I am told that in a year or two, my eldest son will resent me for no good reason.  In 5 years, he’ll put up with me in an effort to get to the car keys. 

Ordinary.

A dictionary offers a few suggested meanings:

1. Commonly encountered
   
2. Usual or normal condition or course of events
3. And then this one, which by my estimation would be the most recent addition to probable usage, inferior quality; second-rate.

In the course of a recent conversation a friend and I were talking about how every life is ordinary.  Eventhough I find this to be true, “ordinary” has become a curse word.  I watch TV about non-ordinary people.  I read books about non-ordinary people.  The news features non-ordinary people.  All the non-ordinary should add up to extraordinary, right?  That’s what we are to believe.  And I’m a sucker to fall for it, to believe the third definition – “inferior quality; second rate.”

My kids, they don’t seem to care.  Right now they are running up and down the hall, laughing with an accute focus on nothing in particular, speaking absolute nonsense, singing songs they’re inventing on the spot.  They don’t seem to mind that this set of activities is simply ordinary.  Kids are dumb that way.  Really second-rate.  In a minute I’m going to go disrupt their nonsense so that they might make something of their lives.

Laughter and joy and smiles are not commonly encountered and certainly not the course of normal events when one owns the third definition, believing that everything must be improved upon in order for it to be worthwhile.  Everything is ordinary.  The sun rises.  Disneyland exists.  Oceans don’t change much.  Technology evolves.   People, spaces, things, events all become extraordinary only according to the perspective you lend.  When you find you are plagued with great discontentment, be gracious, and enjoy ordinary for a change.