Monday's Musings

A Mother's Purse

One of my primary responsibilities as a child sitting in the passenger seat of our Ruby Red Suburban, besides corralling the stray Diet Coke cans so they didn't fall out when I opened the door, was to locate objects in my mother's purse as she drove.  I loathed this task as my mother's purse was always a jumble of gum wrappers, stray post-its, lipstick, and loose credit cards.  Searching for a pen in the abyss of my mother's purse seemed to take ions.  

So you can imagine my shock when I last emptied the contents of my purse onto the table:

It appears as though I practiced juvenile naivety in judging my mother's purse, not understanding that someday I would lug around inexplicable chaos of my own.  Study the photograph above for the contents are rather telling of this stage of life.  Let me highlight a few of the absurdities you will find on closer inspection:

•  Assortment of Small Toys:  Useful for entertaining children strapped in a shopping cart, in their car seats at a stoplight, or while waiting at the doctor's office.  They also serve as cheap, plastic reminders that although I fancy myself a foodie, we eat at McDonalds frequently enough to warrant disqualification.
• Mini-Sticker Pad - A gift for the kiddos from a sweet lady at church.  Recently while dining out the kiddos used these stickers to decorate their Styrofoam cups.  They were entertained for at least 15 minutes - a record for my little ones.
• Mother's Notebook - A constant as writing is a passion and thoughts must be trapped on paper before they fly away. 
• Small Blue Notebook - for jotting down random numbers, grocery lists, and titles of books I wish to read
• Stray Sock - Origin unclear.  It is dirty so I it probably entered my purse when I picked it up from outside.  It is a size 6 months so it either sat in the flower bed for over a year and a half OR has managed to hang out in the bottom of my purse for all that time.
• A Lump of Coal - Don't believe me?  Look closer.  It's the round black thing.  It's origin most likely the Cahaba River Valley where we recently traveled to see the Cahaba Lilies.  Vincent loves to bring me rock treasures like the neighborhood cat loves to bring us his most recent killing, laying it on the front doorstep to be discovered as we walk out the front door to retrieve the mail. 
• 7 Good and Perfect Gifts Booklet - An attempt to capture the small gifts God sends everyday.  Concept and booklet from this beautiful lady.
• Inhaler - I'm an asthmatic.  Diagnosed at the age of twelve, my asthma is exacerbated by exercise and allergies.  I rarely use it anymore because A: The move from Texas improved my allergies and B:  I rarely workout (my lungs thank me, my tummy does not)....
• Stray Headband - Because Sophia never wears them for long but this fact does not dissuade me from putting them in her hair everyday.
• Checkbook - I think only mothers and elderly people carry around checkbooks anymore.  Needed when writing tuition for gymnastics and paying for class portraits.
• Small Bag of Lipsticks - For the two days a week I remember to put it on...
• Billfold - Carries an innumerable "buy 6 ice creams/coffees/smoothies and get the 7th one free" cards.  Also, membership cards to professional organizations and community pools and my blood type card, just in case.

What you WILL NOT find:

• Hand Sanitizer - This may qualify me for "worst mother of the year" award.  No excuses here.  It just never seems to make it in the purse.  Recent studies have shown that over-use of hand sanitizer is harmful to our health long-term.  Well, that's what I will tell you when you ask if I have any on our playdate.  Quoting this obscure study makes me feel better about my negligence.
• Sunglasses - Most likely under the car seat or in the linens drawer, placed there by one of my children and re-discovered when I set out the place mats for dinner.
• An iPhone - Hint, hint
• Empty Diet Coke cans - because they plagued my childhood.  Love you mom!

I hope by opening my purse and laying out its chaotic contents for all to see I have made you feel somewhat better about the stray candy wrappers in your purse.  The inside of a mother's purse is rarely a pretty sight.  Yet, there is blessing in the chaos for the chaos is but a reminder of the living, breathing, beautiful lives that surround us.  Dig deep and you will find treasure - her bracelet, his rock, her artwork, his car.  Treasures and blessing in the chaos - this is a mother's purse.