What Roses?

“Stop and smell the roses.” Sure! I’ll get to that right after I wolf down a quick breakfast, spend all day at work trying to complete a project with limited resources, stop at the store on the way home, and mow the grass after I finally get home. Hopefully, I don’t have problems with the lawn tractor, again, and spend half the evening trying to fix it. Shower. Fall asleep in front of the television. Get up and go to bed and have a restless night of sleep worrying about the project at work I couldn’t finish.

Fortunately, tomorrow is Saturday and I don’t have to go in to work. Saturday morning I’ll sit at the computer trying to complete the project I spent all last night worrying about. Have to hurry. My child (grandchild) has a t-ball game in the afternoon. Sit in the hot sun all afternoon watching small children chase a ball around the field while burning the top of my hair folliclally challenged head because I forgot my hat. Great! I forgot to prepare the Sunday school lesson I’m teaching and I left the lesson book at the church building.

OK! I can do this. After we stop at the Dairy Queen with 2000 bouncing children, who after an additional sugar fix will be bouncing higher, I’ll stop at the church building, pick up the lesson book, and study after dinner. What? The Snerd’s are coming over for a visit? The Snerd’s? Mortimer Snerd is an “expert” on everything and I’ll have to listen to him prattle on until midnight. And his wife… Need I say more?

Now, what were you saying about roses? What roses are you talking about?

Sound familiar? We can become so busy living in the everyday routines that we fail to enjoy life. God has placed roses before us in every direction. It is sad that we only appreciate some of those roses after the winter has taken them away. We need to slow down, look around, and appreciate what He has done and is doing for us. We need to take the time to appreciate our family, friends, blessings, and opportunities that surround us. We need to stop and smell the roses.