Stepping Out of the Gunk and how we carved our jack-o-lantern this year

 If I'm really honest, yesterday was a frustrating day in many ways.
 

We were on edge actually.

But nothing bad had happened,

so we just needed a few attitude adjustments along the way, because attitudes and actions matter around our household.

Usually we carve pumpkins early in October.

For many years, we have carved three pumpkins.
Each one with a face of their choosing.

This is the first time in a long time we have only carved one.

She knew exactly how she wanted it to look.

It was bedtime.

Our days run late and long.

As we pulled slimy gunk from the inside of the pumpkin,
we acknowledged the frustration we were feeling,
and we talked about keeping "gunk" out of our lives.

We talked about kindness vs. rudeness.

We talked about saying please and thank you

as a gracious means of expressing thoughtfulness

and not as a premise to make a demand.

We talked about friendships
and how important it is to be kind and loving to everyone.

We talked about including those who may be more difficult to enjoy.

And we talked about standing up for others
 when our peers try to pull us in a different direction.

We talked about practical ways of doing this each day,

even when the ones closest to us don't approve.

Then at 10:00 p.m. a friend stopped by needing help,

and we had a chance to put into practice,

the things we had just been discussing as we carved and pulled that slimy and yucky "gunk".

Recently, they had said hurtful and rude and unkind things to us, but we needed to be loving and helpful and so that's what we did.

Isn't is interesting how that happens?

I don't want to sound all pompous and proud...
and look at what I've done...

that's not the purpose of what I'm saying...

I'm expressing how we were immediately needed to prove we meant what we were saying...
when we were pulling "gumk"...
and wiping slime...
and saying we needed to get rid of "gunk" and slime in our lives...

yes...

it IS interesting how that happens...

we were happy to help...

and I was thrilled to see my daughter pitch in and help too...

as though we'd never been hurt.

When we were finished and ready to take it to the porch she said,

"Before you carve it,

 it's just called a pumpkin,

 but once it's carved,

you call it a jack-o-lantern."

Yes, removing the "gunk" produces a forever change.

So we set a goal and said,

"Today, just for today, this is how I am going to be."

And guess what?

Tomorrow will be another "today". 

Another chance to "be" without gunk.

The light still shines.

I'm challenged each day to remove the "gunk".