Growing up, my mom “made” me and my siblings do chores. Chores like vacuuming, taking out the trash, and doing dishes. Did I always like doing chores? No. Did I learn to love them? Yes. I didn’t get paid to do my chores because they were part of my responsibility to take care of the house I lived in. I had daily chores, weekly chores, and monthly chores. Throughout the years, the way in which my mom scheduled the chores and who was responsible for which chores changed, but the responsibility of doing chores remained.
There is one chore that stands out above the rest that has actually had a significant impact on my life — dishes. Cleaning up the dishes in the sink at the end of the day involved rinsing and scrubbing dishes, loading the dishwasher, washing any pots and pans by hand, and then wiping and drying all the counters. In reality, it isn’t the biggest deal and it doesn’t take too much time, but when both sides of the sink are overflowing with mountains of dishes, the task can seem impossible, especially when it’s late and you’re tired from the day.
It’s in this moment, when it’s late and I’m tired and I do the dishes anyway that integrity and character is developed.
So Mom, thank you for “making” me do the dishes. It helped shape me into the man I am today. I love you.
AMEN! I am thankful your mom trained you up in this way. And that you were receptive to it. 🙂