Today

In this morning's bustle,
I roused sleepers, warm in their blankets.
Made hurried lunches and
and a hurried breakfast,
and hurried orders: " Get dressed!  Eat! Drink!"
that fell on ears, still languid with sleep.

Out into the cool, fresh morning
I rushed, barely glancing at the sun-laced leaves
or hearing the sweet songs of contented birds.
I drove fast to school,
with the impatience of expectations
hanging over me,
tardy-notes ready to drop on my head.

Still, Carol enjoyed the sweet anticipation
of a book fair,
and Dorothea was delighted to be riding with Dad.
Isaac pitter-patted gleefully, simply
because it was day, and he was alive,
and Ethan slept in
rousing only to wonder where we all were.

Today was a day of piano,
gymnastics, soccer, scouts, violin,
Latin, typing, reading and cleaning, but
it was also a day of gratitude,
sharing a moment of conversation with my distant brother,
cheering Sam from a rough day at work.

It was a day of contemplation
of three ruby rings for three sons of a king, (it is more important to live well than be right)
of laughter in learning, (who'd have thunk Latin could be so funny)
of sisterly sharing, (visiting teaching and book group are manna to my soul)
of order and balance and patience (we're still working to refine our homeschooling methods.)

It was another day of beauty,
stretched from humble beginnings,
to enjoy.