| Sunny Side Up March 16, 2005 � 2005, Kathleen Gibson Beware commitments made in leisure I'm in big trouble. A friend who's a whiz with the needle landed a contract to make 350 hand puppets by April's end. Seventy each of elephants, lions, zebras, giraffes, and emus. I was on solo vacation in B.C. when her request came in�.would I help? Let me set the scene for you, because I really want you to understand why I did the silly thing I did. At the time, I was spending a few days with my sister in PoCo. No one treats her guests better than my big sis, Beverly. Decadent treats in my lovely 'shabby chic' guest room (that's a bona fide decorating style, in case you're wondering), gifts under my pillow each night, long mornings in our housecoats, chatting on her back deck, sipping coffee and Chai tea; basking in unprecedented February sunshine. Dinners out, a night at the theater, evenings beside a crackling fire. Oh�I lived gloriously those few days. Call me spoiled - you're right. So when Glenda's request came in, immersed as I was in a life of leisure, completely euphoric, and entirely 'forgetting those things which were behind me' (as scripture encourages), namely my already overcommitted schedule back home, I blithely promised that, yes, of course - I'm there for you. All the way. We'll get this done together, you and I, and won't it be fun? Not only that, but when Glenda told me she had no patterns, I volunteered to design the critters. "I used to design stuff, you know. It's been a while, but how hard can a hand puppet be?" (Thus speaketh ignorance.) She breathed a relieved sigh. "Oh, great! I can sew, but I worried about the patterns. I feel so much better knowing I'm holding the hand of my friend." I stood a little straighter. Reality set in five minutes after my homecoming. None of my commitments had vaporized while I'd been coasting in B.C.'s sunshine. Family, church and community responsibilities; writing deadlines, workshops, Bible study groups�. And in my spare room were baskets of fake fur, pages of notes, and cartoon pictures of the beasts I was to copy. And friend Glenda had gone on her own vacation. Oh, what was I thinking? I hadn't only overestimated my amount of uncommitted time - I'd severely overestimated my shriveled 'designer' brain cells. It's been years since I drafted patterns professionally. Last night my daughter and son-in-law stopped by. I opened the door a crack, thrust out my second attempt at the lion prototype and roared. "Lion or monkey. Right answer gets you in.." They chuckled and pushed aside the sorry figure on my hand. "Monkey, mom," said one. "Actually, it looks more like a lamb," offered the other. I panicked. "No, it can't be a lamb, that was my first try!" I can't do this. My friend's going to kill me, and God must be shaking his head too - he already had my schedule planned, and puppets weren't on it. Now you see why I'm in trouble. Pray. Respond Home |
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