Don’t Hang That Halo On Me

Last updated on: August 22, 2014 at 4:02 pm by Rebecca Frech

Don’t Hang That Halo On Me 2014-08-22T16:02:59-05:00 Rebecca Frech

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The woman at the grocery store looked at my overfull shopping cart and my half dozen children and proclaimed, “I could never do that. You must be a saint.” People say this to me all the time, canonizing me against my will.

I’m not a saint. I’m just a normal mom. I’m a normal mom with 6 children. The six children don’t make me a saint, they just mean that I know more about the inside of a delivery room than most non-medical people.

Having a big family does not mean that I am more organized than anyone else. I am better at throwing stuff away or dragging it off to Goodwill than almost anyone, but that’s not the kids fault. I’ve been throwing junk out for years. I do admit to owning a label maker, but it ran out of paper a year or so ago. I keep meaning to buy more, but it never makes it on my list.

Having a big family does not mean we are wealthy. I’m not sure how people have come to the conclusion that we are, but I know they think so. I often am told, “I could never afford to feed all those kids.” We can’t really either if you look at it on paper. We’re not richer than other people, we’re just better with coupons and bargain hunting. It’s not cleverness on my part, we like to actually have food to eat.

All these kids don’t mean that I was somehow created with more patience than anyone else. I firmly believe that patience is built up through strength training. The more times you use it, the more endurance you have. If the people in the store were looking, they’d see that I have ample opportunity to practice patience every day. I wasn’t blessed with perfect children, just with the opportunity to learn patience. A lot of opportunity.

Homeschooling all these kids doesn’t mean that I’m some kind of genius. It simply means that I was clever enough to buy the teacher’s manuals and actually read them. I not smarter than anyone else, I’m just honest about the fact that I don’t know everything.

The truth of it all is that I’m not better or holier than anyone else. Having sainthood bestowed on me by random strangers makes me slightly uncomfortable. I’m not doing anything miraculous, heroic, or superhuman. I’m just a woman who loves my husband and our children and tries to do the best I can for them. Some days I am a spectacular success, some a spectacular failure. Most days I am just average and getting along like everyone else. My average is just bigger and the volume makes it look more impressive than it really is.

Uncategorized

Previous Post

October 6, 2010

The Old Broken Fork

Next Post

October 8, 2010 Love Hurts

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Uncategorized

Select a Month May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

The heavens declare God's glory without speech or words. Which psalm proclaims creation's silent testimony?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Psalm 148 Psalm 8 Psalm 19 Psalm 104