Burnt Toast

Each day can bring something new into our lives—new situations, new challenges, and new changes. Some fit into the flow of our lives as we’re living them. Others can disrupt our lives and make our journey a bit rougher. One of the best tools for dealing with the more demanding difficulties is acceptance. Here is a wonderful story that illustrates that:

 

When I was little, my mom made breakfast and dinner every day. I remember one night when she had made dinner after a long, hard day at work. That night, she placed a plate of eggs, sausage, and extremely burned toast in front of my dad.

 

I waited to see he noticed it. Yet all my dad did was reach for his toast, smile at mom, and ask me how my day was at school. I don’t remember what I told him, but I remember him smearing butter and jelly on that toast and eating every bite.

 

Mom apologized to Dad for burning the toast. I’ll never forget what he said, “Baby, I love burned toast!”

 

That night, when I went to say good night to Dad, I asked him if he really liked his toast burned.

 

He wrapped me in his arms and said, “Dear, your mother put in a hard day at work today, and she’s exhausted. Besides, a little burned toast never hurt anyone.” Then he said, “You know life is full of imperfect things and people. And I’m not the best housekeeper or cook, either.”

 

What Dad told me  helped me learn to accept my own and others’ faults and our differences. It is one of the keys to creating healthy, growing, and lasting relationships.

 

My prayer is that I will continue to take the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of life and lay them at the feet of God because, in the end, He’s the only One who will be able to give me relationships and situations where burnt toast isn’t a deal-breaker.

 

As you journey on, when you can’t control or change your world, accept it as it is. It will lead you down the path to peace and serenity.