Dear Karma

Dear Karma,

Did I do something to you? Did I hurt someone lately without realizing it? Did I do something carelessly that benefited myself and tore someone else down while in the process? I don't see how, since all I ever do is chores.

Today, I admit I've been a bit slow. I didn't finish all the dishes, I didn't do all the laundry, and I didn't mop the living room. But I did makes the beds, do most of the dishes, wipe down the counters, get the coffeemaker set up for my hubby in the morning, made food for the kids, sit them in the living room with their "Your Baby Can Read" video, pick up their toys, sweep the bathroom, put down the rugs, sweep the bedroom and the hallway, and took out the trash. After all that, I still had enough energy (just barely, but enough) to go outside and feed the animals. Just as I was about to head inside, I looked around the front yard. With everything that keeps me busy inside the house, and the fact that I don't do anything outside anyways, hubby and I made a deal that I would take care of inside, and he would take care of outside. Needless to say, outside wasn't looking too good. A trash bag had been ripped open (whether by wind or the dog, I'm not sure) and trash was all over the yard, the leaves from fall hadn't been raked up, and it was just a mess. Out of the goodness of my heart, I decided that I would be nice and clean it up. I went around the yard, picked up 90% of the trash, remembered that the rake is in the back of hubby's truck so I swept up 70% of the leaves with the broken off head of the outside broom, and straightened up a few things that were not trash or leaves.

After all that, having been outside for about 30 minutes, and having left the kids in their bedroom playing with their toys, I come inside to a disaster. The movies on the bottom 4 shelves of the entertainment system were all over the living room floor. In the kitchen, the coffeemaker was open, and the scoops of coffee grounds were on the counter, inside the coffee pot, inside the coffeemaker underneath the filter, and also inside the coffeemaker next to it that I use specifically for brewing tea. There were some clean dishes that were now in the sink, 3 broken pieces of plastic silverware that I had washed to reuse, one of my youngest son's spoons was bent at an odd angle, and there was water on the floor. In my bedroom, half a stack of my brand new mint-condition World of Warcraft Trading Cards were spread out on the floor. Upon closer inspection, about 20 cards are now bent or scratched. I hope I have doubles of those, because they are no longer good enough to go in my collection. Now, my kids are usually VERY well behaved when I have to feed the animals, and it does not take me more than 20 minutes on a normal day. Yes, I took an extra 10 minutes to pick up the yard, but how was that a bad thing?! I don't know what you put into their heads today to make them cause so much trouble in such a short period of time, but I do not like it.

Everything I did today, not only of my normal chores but also going out of my way to do something that I didn't even have to do, and I get this in return? Are you telling me that I shouldn't plan ahead by making the coffeepot ready before morning? Are you telling me that I can't have nice things? Is this punishment for something? Maybe I should have mopped the living room, maybe I should have completed the last of the dishes and laundry, and maybe I should have started a big fancy dinner hours in advance. I would have done all of those things if that's what it would have taken to prevent more work for me to do.

I do not feel as if I deserved what you gave me today. I understand that you may see this as me complaining, but I needed to say something. I disciplined the children and made them clean up what parts of their mess they were capable, and they have spent the afternoon in their bedroom. They knew that what they did was wrong, and I got plenty of hugs and kisses in apology. Unless you are going to tell me exactly what it is I did that you had an issue with, I expect tomorrow to be better.

Sincerely,
Crystal