Anti-social Tendencies

There is a part of me that enjoys church functions; the rest of me HATES going to things like the church picnic. I think my husband is rubbing off on me.

I just can’t seem to enjoy going like the other people who sit around visiting.

Maybe because I don’t get to sit around visiting? I hate the stress (I put on myself) of finding a recipe, fixing the food that morning, putting together play clothes for the kids, making sure I had my Sunday school lesson ready, transporting food to church and then to the picnic. I had to get stuff together to play a game with the kids – feeding baby food to a couple teens. I also had to straighten out a mess with the Secret Sisters (I never realized I was even “in charge”.) I also had forms for the cookbook we’re working on, and I had to hand out stuff for the kids’ Christmas program.

For lunch, I had to go through the smorgasbord of food trying to find things my kids would/could eat. I had to estimate the carbs to figure my son’s insulin from food I didn’t fix. That kinda sucks the joy out of enjoying everyone’s creative dishes. And then I followed my kids around all afternoon. Since there is only a handful of kids, it isn’t like there’s a program or adult supervising them.

I watched them play a game with the pastor’s wife that included a hay bale with candy inside. The kids tore it apart, grabbed candy, and then threw hay at each other. Oh yeah, and it was raining – hard. And then the pastor took the kids to play kickball on the muddy baseball field. Yeah.

It made a huge difference that my husband was working 2nd shift. But I kept thinking I would rather have just gone home after church. And in the mood I was in, I knew I wasn’t an encouragement to anyone. I had someone suggest I find a couple songs for the adults to sing, too for the Christmas program. Do these people understand the work that goes into that? I’ve already given up hosting the ladies’ Christmas party at my house. I wouldn’t be heading up the program this year, except there is no way I want a repeat of last year’s fiasco.

My kids had fun, which is the only reason I went.