Mon Jul 14 08:30 EDT 1997
Weekend Update: July 11-13

The usual: enjoying lots of people; yard sales and auctions (got some
real bargains).

Joy was talking to me about needing help from me and the kids around
the house and the yard.  Sometimes she feels as if it is 5 against 1.
And it is.  I have asked the kids to help out and for the most
part they do quite well.  It is just that at times, entropy gets the
best of us, and Joy feels the brunt of it.  And lately, some of the
kids complained about some of the chores when the pool and other fun
beckons them to come and play.

It is these times when we assess and make adjustments in our parenting,
calling the kids together for a pow-wow of sorts, and affirming that
we are all in this together and need to work (and play) together to
maintain our happy family.  We, all six of us (according to our capacity),
believe that God gave us the Pepperell Manor as a gift, beyond our
wildest dreams.  But a gift to use.  If we really believe that beyond our
words, it would change our behavior.  And old, old song has a phrase
in it that I think of over and over: "every duty charms me with delight."
There are times that even chores can be pleasant, even when they are
difficult and tiring (and I sometimes put them off for a while).  When
people come over, the chores (most of them) can wait, because relationships
take precedence over the entropy that our Sunday evening guests witnessed
after a weekend of many enjoying the gift.

That's all for today. If you want to know about the auction or yard sales,
send email. Lots of love.

Mark
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