The joke’s on me

A high point for me this week was when I came home from the church steering committee meeting Thursday night and found out that Sam has dubbed the drama I share with our family “mom dram.”

For the past few days the family witnessed my latest tailspin and decided to laugh about it. They have made me aware that mom dram is a thing, not just an event that occurred this week.

Mom dram happens after I see a problem in which I am certain that others are wrong and I have to do or say something to make it right. Mom dram occurs because, even while I think I’m right, to go against others is complex and fraught with emotion for me. I think. I write. I talk. I stew. The issue oozes out of me all over this house. It affects my downtime at work and, pretty terrifyingly, my driving.

In just the last six months, mom dram occurred over baseball coaching, late night neighbor noise, George’s rehab facility choices, my principal’s censorship of the school newspaper, and, most recently, theological questions and communication styles.

I hope I prayed during these horror shows: “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.”

I have no idea how much wisdom or courage or serenity God is granting me, but I know his forgiveness is always there. Maybe that’s because I repeat the Jesus prayer a lot: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner.” Yes, this I know.

This week I received a sign of that mercy in the grace shown to me by my husband and sons, who have now made me into a meme.