Opinion

It’s The Simple Things In Life

I never imagined that a simple morning adventure with my 3-year-old would send me into such a whirlwind of nostalgia and fear for our country all at the same time. But this morning, that is exactly what happened.

I walked downstairs, went into the kitchen, and what I saw made my heart skip a beat. Then two beats. I vaguely remember telling myself to just breathe. In the middle of my kitchen floor was the carton of eggs.

I had just run upstairs for just a minute. Literally, I had only been upstairs for about one minute. I was in the middle of making brunch for the family while my husband ran to the store to get a few items. I was making pancakes, and had cracked the eggs I needed, dropped them into the bowl, and ran upstairs. One minute later, upon returning downstairs to complete my task, my routine was shattered.

I knew it was my 3-year-old who had put the carton of eggs on the floor because the older children were upstairs doing chores. He had been watching cartoons when I ran upstairs, and when I came back downstairs, he was still in the living room watching cartoons. That means that in a very short amount of time, he was in the kitchen, eggs were on the floor, he had heard me coming back downstairs and had high-tailed it back to where he was “supposed” to be all along!

Now, honestly- the fact that the carton of eggs was on the floor was no big deal. That’s just a fact of life with a 3-year-old. They are going to get into things. I was also quite astonished to realize not a single egg was cracked! They were still neatly in the carton, sitting all nice and pretty in the middle of the kitchen floor. Well- that is, the eggs that were still there!

Upon quickly counting, I realized that there were 5 eggs missing from the carton. I had opened a brand new carton, used 2 eggs, there were 5 eggs sitting very nice and pretty in the carton. This is what made me panic! Where were the eggs? I don’t think he remembers the Easter egg hunt from the last 2 years, but hey, how do we know what those little minds remember?

We’ve been talking about Easter- the Real Meaning of Easter, Passover- and we’ve talked about the Easter Bunny and Easter Eggs. Does he remember? Did he hide the eggs- raw eggs- all over the house?

I start searching for the eggs. I ask him- very sweetly- where he had put them. He told me all about it. The only problem is I have no idea what he said! He talks fairly well on some things, but when he goes into a “long story”- you get a word here or there, maybe!

I asked him to show me where he put the eggs. He just continued his beautiful little baby babble. Oh, how I love that baby babble! I really do! But…. I can’t find the eggs!

Now, if you are wondering why in the world I was so upset that the eggs were missing, I promise you it has nothing to do with the cost of the eggs. If that were the only issue I would have laughed it off and gone on with cooking brunch.

Have you ever smelled a rotten egg? If you have, you know without even asking why this was a very big deal! If you have not, let me just say a rotten egg is the worst smell you can ever smell. And that’s ONE egg! Now, imagine FIVE rotten eggs! If I didn’t find these eggs we would have to end up moving out of the house when they started rotting!

I searched in his little shopping cart, thinking maybe he decided to “go shopping” and put the eggs in his basket.

I searched the trash can.

I searched the bathroom.

I searched the corners of the kitchen.

I searched in the refrigerator.

I searched in the sink.

I saw no evidence- anywhere- of broken eggs. I couldn’t imagine how in the world my little rambunctious, all-boy could have put eggs somewhere without leaving a drop of evidence trailed behind him. But he had.

I decided to just go about my task of making brunch, and when my husband got home we would search together. So I went back to the kitchen, praying the entire way. I picked up my spatula to start stirring my pancake batter. That’s when I saw them. Sitting very nice and neatly in the bowl of other ingredients were five eggs. I heard my son behind me just babbling away. I turned around and saw the sweetest smile I have ever seen looking back at me! Through his babbles I heard, “See, mommy, I help!”

And my heart melted!

I picked him up, snuggled him close, giggled with him, and thanked him for his help. I reminded him that Mommy should always be with him if he is going to help with the cooking. He smiled again, said ok, and wanted down to be along with his day.

If you are a parent you know that kids grow up way too fast. My oldest is 9-years-old now, and my heart aches with how fast she is growing up. Her childhood is slipping away too quickly for me, and not fast enough for her. I cling to every single simple moment in life with my children. Too much of our time is spent on homework, doing “new math” that makes absolutely no sense at all. Kids are no longer allowed to just be kids. By the time they enter Kindergarten they want them to know how to read! When I was a child we had a 20 minute recess, twice a day, in addition to our lunch time. Now, my children have a 15 minute recess- one recess a day.  My… how times have changed, and not so much for the better!

My heart aches, not only because I want to keep my kids as young as possible, as long as possible, but also because I do not know what their future holds. Oh, I know… none of us know what the future holds on anything! However, I never imagined that I would have to worry for my children’s future in regards to the country I know and love.

If you had told me that the country I grew up in would change so drastically in my lifetime I would have told you there was no way in hell that would ever happen! I would have told you that too many people love this country and all she stands for to allow that to happen! But I would have been wrong. I see now how complacent so many of us have been over the years. Yes, I said us!

I cannot point fingers as anyone around me without having 4 pointing back at me. I never imagined that my complacency with the way things were would come back to haunt me as it is now. As I said in the beginning of this article, I never imagined that a simple morning adventure with my 3-year-old would send me into such a whirlwind of nostalgia and fear for this country all at the same time. How long will our few moments of care-free life on a Sunday morning be possible when things are moving so rapidly to bring about “change” that so few of us want?

I wasted so many years with my head stuck in the sand. I hated politics. In fact, I still hate politics! My husband is a Political-Science major and tries to “educate” me all the time about the ways of politics. I could care less, honestly! I am sick and tired of the games that these people play- on all sides! Where is the common sense? It certainly does not reside in Washington!  I am involved now because I know I have to be involved! However, I still absolutely detest the games that politicians play!

While I did not agree with a lot of things that President Bush did in office, I honestly was not involved enough to know what was going on. I am sure had I been more involved and aware I would have liked less than what I know now. I do know that President Bush’s education plan of “No Child Left Behind” is an absolute and complete failure! “New Math” is just the tip of the iceberg of this epic fail program/slogan/farce!

However, when President Obama was elected the entire world changed. Literally! No longer were we seen as a country that commanded respect by our very existence. Now, the so-called leader of the Free World bowed to every other leader. No, I have absolutely no problem with showing respect to other leaders, but bowing before them? Now, rather than speaking of the greatness of America, our “leader” apologizes for our exceptionalism, and even denies that we are exceptional! Now, do I see us- as a people- better than others? Absolutely, positively not! However, with every fiber of my being, from the very depths of my soul, I know that God has shed His grace on America, The Beautiful! I will not apologize for God’s grace and blessings! However, I am very sad that I have been complacent with how blessed I am to live in a land so very blessed by the hand of God Almighty! I am ashamed that I have wasted so much time protecting the ideals and values that I hold so dear because “politics” did not interest me. Now I fight- night and day- every waking moment- to protect the blessings that God has bestowed on this nation. Our freedoms are slipping away more and more every day.

But in the words of William Wallace- “They may take my life, but they will NEVER take my FREEDOM!”

I will not just lie down and allow this nation to be overtaken by people who do not see America as the beautiful land of opportunity that she is. I look at my five children and my heart aches to know that they already live in a mere shadow of the beautiful nation I grew up in.

Yes, it was simply a carton of eggs in the middle of the kitchen floor with 5 missing eggs that brought on this emotional, nostalgic piece. It truly is the simple things in life that mean the most. It is for my children’s future that I fight night and day for the country I know and love. I remember her well- and I will not give her up without a fight to the death! Too much is at stake.

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Rich Mitchell

Rich Mitchell is the editor-in-chief of Conservative Daily News and the president of Bald Eagle Media, LLC. His posts may contain opinions that are his own and are not necessarily shared by Bald Eagle Media, CDN, staff or .. much of anyone else. Find him on twitter, facebook and

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