Laughter is good for the soul. Learning to laugh at ourselves and let go of our failings brings contentment and the ability to have patience amid life’s more frustrating and irritating circumstances. Often times these very circumstances turn out to be pretty funny in the end anyway. It is all about perspective, and I certainly have a lot more of that these days. I had just such a circumstance this past week when I spent an afternoon frantically searching through every nook and cranny of my house looking for my social security card.
The search began when my husband asked for the card for the recent re-finance we did on our house. Sadly, up to that point I didn’t even know it was missing.
I started the search in the most obvious place, the “Important Papers File”. Among many other “important papers”, I found my Honorable Discharge from the military (yes, I was in the military), the receipt for my wedding ring (circa 1995), and my husband’s high school transcripits from 1982-83. Which is a relief because I might need those someday.
No social security card.
Where to look next? Purses.
Disclaimer: I am not a hoarder. I am a busy mom whose purse seems to take on a life of it’s own – girl’s, I know you can relate. When I switch to another purse, I take out the essentials and toss the previous one on a shelf in the closet, usually with all sorts of interesting things tucked in side pockets or left to linger at the bottom of the bag.
I looked through what felt like 3,496 purses and 562 wallets but was really about 30 and 12. Here is what I found. HUNDREDS of cards; grocery store VIP savings cards, discount punch cards, business cards, insurance cards, cards, cards cards. More receipts than I care to discuss, old grocery lists (which being the foodie that I am, proved to be an interesting distraction), movie ticket stubs (Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, 2009), 14 lip glosses, 16 pens (ironic considering I can never find one in my purse when I need one), 6 packs of gum, countless breath mints, an assortment of small toys, a few packets of fruit snacks, flushable wipes, enough feminine hygeine products to stock a Walgreens, and so much spare change that I am pretty sure the college tuition for at least one of my children is now covered. Oh, and $20 bucks. Yeah!
The low point came when I discovered the side pocket of one purse to be filled with loose M&M’s which were most likely used to placate a restless toddler in a public setting. Considering my youngest child just turned 5, we can assume the M&Ms were at least two years old. Thankfully, they were plain because at that point had they been peanut, I probably would have eaten them.
No social security card.
Next? Junk drawer, keepsake boxes, my craft room/office. Lord have mercy on my soul.
Here I will just give you a small sampling of what I found in the interest of protecting any dignity I might have left. My college ID (I graduated in 1991), the medal I received upon completing the P.F. Chang’s Marathon in 2004 (marathons are 26.2 miles, a fact that in 2004 did not terrify me nearly as much as it should have), newspaper clippings, quotes, poems, old pictures and “yet to be tried” recipies.
No social security card.
In fact, I still have not found my social security card, but I did find something else in the process of looking. While, at first it was frustrating and irritating to have to spend my Thursday afternoon digging through my disorganized and cluttered failings, as it turned out, I actually had an enjoyable visit with some old memories. I purged and organized and I now have a fresh clean start on the purse shelf, more lip gloss, and a few new recipies to try. Oh, and $20 bucks! Perspective.
Next? The forgotten boxes in the garage from our move two years ago or I could just go to the Social Security Office and request a new card. Either way, I’ll need you to pray for me.
Happy Monday, may it be filled with laughter and perspective.
Welcome Company 