Sunday, February 20, 2011

Dig, Dig, Dig

We were listening to a Disney CD this morning and the "Dig, Dig, Dig/Heigh-Ho" song from Snow White  came on. It's a song I've always loved, but as I was listening to it today I had an odd little epiphany towards the end of this verse:

We dig dig dig dig dig dig dig from early morn till night
We dig dig dig dig dig dig dig up everything in sight
We dig up diamonds by the score
A thousand rubies, sometimes more
But we don't know what we dig 'em for
We dig dig dig a-dig dig

And just for the record... I cannot read through those lyrics. I MUST sing them. Every. Single. Time.  Okay... moving on!

The line "But we don't know what we dig 'em for" just kind of hit me today.  I mean...isn't that how life seems to work?  I know it is for me.  I dig through trials and troubles. I dig through the craziness of everyday life. I try to do my best and work hard and and sometimes... well, sometimes I just kinda sit back and think "What in the heck am I digging for???"

Now, I know that I'm rewarded with blessings throughout my day. Not necessarily HUGE things each day. But little things. A phone call from a friend. The giggles of a child. A hug from my husband.  A beautiful sunset. The good bits of every day that make life so much better. And yet, for me, I seem to miss the value of these diamonds and rubies.  In my case, I think I don't recognize the gems like I should.

Maybe it's because the digging process can be difficult, monotonous, frustrating and extremely time consuming. And by the time I get to the good stuff I'm tired and covered in dirt. And sometimes those blessings don't look quite like I had thought. I was hoping for a sapphire when I plucked out that ruby. Or maybe the blessing is something that really doesn't look like a gem at all. It's rough around the edges, dull and has absolutely no appeal (in my life, these ones are often disguised as a U-Haul van.... I think I won't understand the beauty of these gems till later in life or maybe not till the life after this...).

 I guess what I'm trying to say (and not doing a very good job of it) is that this life is a lot of work, but it's worth it. I may not understand what all of my diamonds and rubies are for right now... but someday I will. The only question left is this: which dwarf am I going to be like as I dig, dig, dig from early morn till night?

Now I'll leave you with a few gems from this month...
Little Bug at horseback riding lessons.  Look at that grin!!
Red with his new hair cut... I told him to give me a "Hurrah" cheer.  This as good as it gets when you're 12...
Baby Girl finishing homework...
A finished project for a friend...
It's the little things...

8 comments:

Nancy Face said...

What a great post...such insight! :)

Love your pictures!

The dwarf I would be today is Sleepy...I procrastinated preparing for my Young Women lesson during the week, so I collapsed into bed at 11 last night and got back up at 2 AM to get it done before 9 AM church! Foolish!

Kristina P. said...

Such an excellent analogy.

I am loving the quilts1

Yvonne said...

Are you kidding--YOU SAID IT BEAUTIFULLY. I LOVE it. So very true--I think what I loved the most, is "I was hoping for a sapphire when I plucked out that ruby" Thank you.

Love, love, love the pic of Little Bug at horseback riding lessons--the grin says it all.

I hope you are enjoying your new area.

Bonnie the Boss said...

I have to sing it too. lol. I think we all get feeling a bit like those cute dwarves. Hang in there, I think you are amazing. I also think you have a great way of looking at it.

Adena and Greg said...

What a great analogy. and that quilt is amazing! You make me think about possibly attempting one myself!

The Johnson's said...

Thanks - I needed to read this today. I am going to try to have fun while digging!

Todd and Camille Hendrickson said...

Thanks for your post Melissa! And the music :)

Pepper said...

Melissa, if you could get me the info for the fabric donations that would be amazing! You can email me at thesassypepper@gmail.com. Thank you so much!