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The three leaved clover


 klavertje3He ran up to me excitedly, holding out his gift. A little clover.

I put it with the pile of other gifts. A dandelion without a stem, a buttercup, a leaf and handfull of grass.
I did a double-take. “Is that a 4-leaved clover?”

It wasn’t. It only had 3 leaves so in the pile it went.

And after a minute, out it came.
I pressed it carefully between the pages of our marriage Bible and then I framed it.

It’s standing on the dresser, small and oridinary and pretty, the face?of all my 3-leaved clover moments.?Because they are quite wonderful, really.

Someday I’ll find a 4-leaved clover to go beside it, for all the special moments in life. The day Mike asked me to be his girlfriend, and the day he asked me to be his wife. The day we said I do. Those painful but?terribly wonderful days on which my 3 little boys were born.

I don’t forget those days very often, though. I don’t need all that many reminders, although I did forget our wedding anniversary last year.

It’s the 3-leaved clover moments that are the forgotten ones.?The moments out of which the bulk of my life is made of, would I rush on by, ?to get to the 4-leaved moments? to the vacations and the celebrations, Saturdays and chocolate and visits.

Gabriel’s crushed little clover stand there bravely, showing me it’s there, it’s worthy of my notice and my presence.

3-leaved clovers represent my minutes, my days, my life. I don’t need to be a flashingly bright and important person. I just need to be here in my own days in my own place with my own people, and be faithful to them.

Every day, I have my 3-leaved clover moments and I aspire to live in them all the way and not just drift along in a foggy haze until my 4-leaved clover moment that is otherwise known as bedtime arrived.
Because so many more moments come around before then.

clover3

There’s getting up and making breakfast and playing with duplos and reading a new book with a baby pulling my hair and my shirt.

There’s seeing 2 little boys learn how to play together a little more each day. There’s waiting for papa to come home and there kissing him when he does. Sometimes there’s Caleb who runs to meet papa out on the street, chubby little legs not going fast enough and dimpled little hands stretching out to papa already. The little mouth that smiles and lets out a shriek that hurts my ears.

There’s doing the dishes when the dishwasher is broken and making yoghurt. There’s cleaning the floor and not cleaning the fridge although it needs it.

There’s boys in the sandbox playing quietly for long stretches of time and then there’s some sand in someone’s eyes and a loud scream echoes over my world. There’s little boys who love love love the few times I let them help me with the cooking.

There’s hugging cousins as if they haven’t seen each other in years, while really, it’s only been a few hours.

There’s a smile and a word and a nod.
There’s a 3 leaved clover and another one and then some more and don’t you just love it?

What are your 3-leaved-clovers today? Go pick one, dry it and tape it on one of your kitchen cabinets just to make sure you don’t forget!

And here, in my little corner of the world, I go and hug my 3 boys extra tight. The 3-leaved clover moment, it flutters in my heart just like the butterflies dance in your heart when you’re in love.
Mon Jun 20th, 2016 1:26 PM | Category: Being mama

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