Friday, August 7, 2009

The Bright White Dress

There is a story my mom used to tell about taking me to the babysitter in a bright white dress.

While my babysitter was quite prim and proper in her own right, she evidently would always ask, "Do you expect her to come home with a white dress, too?" Probably half kidding. My mom would always respond, "Well, yes!" Probably also half kidding. But the reality is, I did come home completely clean. I did not make messes. I used to wonder when she would tell this story if it was my genetic predisposition or if my mom just instilled it in me.

I never gave this story much thought until yesterday.

As you may know, my parents kept Caleb and Sarah for us while we were in Michigan. We have been home for a week now, and just last night I finally did their laundry! Evidently they had enough clothes to last through this week so I could be lazy and not do a load of their stuff. Before I started it I thought to myself, "I wonder how many shirts I should have put 'Shout' on instead of letting them sit for over a week in a Wal-Mart bag."

But as I pulled out each shirt...each pair of shorts...I just couldn't believe my eyes. NOTHING HAD ANYTHING ON IT! It just looked worn, a bit wrinkled, and of course, did not smell fresh. But other than that, it did not look like my kids' dirty clothes. Even Caleb's socks (which happened to be brand new) hardly looked worn.

And then the story of my bright white dress at the babysitter came to mind.

I just wonder if my mom has the ability to teach a child how to do this? If it's expected, it just happens?

Thanks, Mom, for keeping my kids. And keeping them clean! :o)

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