What are we doing?- My thoughts on Jon and Katie Plus 8

I'll be the first to admit that I have read the People article about the Gosselins, and I watched the show a couple of seasons ago, but we need to remember this is a family not an entertainment show. When I watched, it was mostly to make myself feel better for my own chaos and shortcomings, and that my friends is exploitation.

We now have a family that is struggling, chased by Paparazzi, and even young Americans doing video diaries of the reality of divorce. Divorce is traumatic for the children involved, are we now going to drag innocent bystanders (tv viewers) through this kind of mess?

I am so sad. So sad for Jon and Kate. So sad for those precious 8 children. So sad for their friends and family. And especially so sad about what this situation exposes for us all. This is the deep darkness that is pulling our culture down.

The things that hurt in my life, the ways in which I find myself destructive, and the dark areas that are deeply ingrained in my marriage and parenting... are the same things that a nation is gawking at in this family. I do know that this family invited the eyes of America into their lives and homes, but we have collectively taken way more than they wanted to give.

It has to stop... or at least stop being considered entertainment.

A week of catch up

This has turned out to be a week of catch up for my family, and I am grateful for the opportunity to get things back in order. I am also grateful for the morning phone call from a friend that ended with us making a park date for the kids this afternoon. Our friends are going away for a bit, so I am glad to have some time to catch up before they leave. It has been a tough time for both of our families and it will be good for the soul to play together for a bit! It is such poetic simplicity when a friend calls just when you need something to look forward to.

Moments of Clarity

A restful moment
Originally uploaded by poetic mama

Life offers us little moments of clarity. Times when we get to see a little more of our internal core. This has been a year of some important moments for me. Years like this happen. The last time I went around this block, my family had a couple of deaths, a couple of serious heart issues, cancer, and depression. All in one calendar year.

This year has not been one of those years, and I am grateful for that. This year has had it's challenges though... job loss, relational strains, injury, etc. And yet, again I am reminded that is not by my strength that I journey through this life. I am carried by one much bigger than me and I have friends and family who surround me and help me remember that truth in those dark moments.

I am so very human... and I am grateful for the precious gift of that humanity. Even in the moments of clarity.