Laughter and love

In certain situations, there's not a whole lot more that a person can do than either cry or laugh. Two nights ago, I was home watching Emma and Michael... except that it was supposed to be easier than that. Emma was already in bed. I think Michael was sleeping, too. I was just staying home so that Christy could go out shopping by herself.

But Emma was having a very hard time falling asleep. I kept hearing her making noise on the baby monitor. It was bedtime, so I left her alone. But then I could hear her calling for her pacifier. Figuring that she had thrown it out of her crib, I went into her room.

She was completely naked. She had stripped off her pajama shirt and pants, then dismantled her diaper. And she had peed on the bed.

No sooner had I discovered this than Michael woke up and started crying. Loudly.

And so it went, back and forth, Emma's needs and Michael's needs. We finally got it all sorted out, but it was definitely one of those times when you can either laugh or cry. It made me
wonder, What makes the difference?

Obviously, there are many factors. Fatigue, difficulty of situation, length of situation, etc. But I think one factor that makes a big difference is love. Sometimes in these kinds of situations, all I care about is getting back to my activity and enjoying my plans. I tend to come nearer to crying when I'm concerned about getting back to my things... crying or anger. On the other hand, when I go into these things caring more about Emma and Michael, or whoever else might be involved, most of the time I end up laughing. With love, the situations aren't overwhelming and instead remind me that life is unpredictable, and that even my best-laid plans are really rather flimsy. I suppose when I laugh it involves a bit of relief, because I recognize that I don't have to be perfect, my life doesn't have to be perfect, and love covers over all the imperfections and allows life to be liveable and enjoyable. So I think love really makes a difference between our responses to potential frustrations. I think the Bible would agree...