The Epiphany of the Mismatched Sock Bag

Sometimes, the mysteries of our world just astound me...the beauty of nature, the headiness of being in love, the fact that a family of four, one of whom is away at college most of the year, can have more socks in the mismatched sock bag than matched socks in the drawer! I am learning that wearing  matched socks is "so twentieth century."  "Nobody wears matched socks anymore."

This has become a bit of an obsession of mine--where are all those darned (pun intended) socks?  I want to point out that of the sixty or so mismatched socks in the bag, only two belong to me.  I seem to be able to keep my socks in order, immune to the gremlins that apparently abscond with my husband's, son's, and daughter's on a regular basis. I've often thought about having a community sock swap to see if they have somehow wound up in neighbors' houses.

I began to understand that this whole sock thing, like so many things in life, has to do with expectations. Parenting is filled with expectations. Some expectations are essential to enable our kids to grow up to be law- abiding citizens who share and have good hygiene and clean rooms.  But many of our expectations really boil down to our preferences and can be a great source of tension in a household if we don't see them for what they are. 

Now I'm not saying that we, as parents, should throw up our hands and give up. But I do think, particularly as our children move into their teen years, that we need to really consider what is essential and what we can let go. It's also good to let them know that we are letting go. In the negotiation that is raising a teen, it is important to have chits we can cash in ("remember, I stopped nagging you about the socks...")

Now, of course, there is an easy solution to this sock predicament--just buy all the same socks and forget about it.  But, let me share with you my epiphany: I was in the storage room a while back and moved some things and Voila!--there sat several of my daughter's socks smooshed under the boxes. I was so pleased that at least some of the mystery had come to light, and took great pleasure in reuniting these socks with their mates and returning them to the sock drawers from whence they came! 

Now really, my life isn't that boring, but it's good to remember that changing your expectations and looking at things differently can be the difference between being frustrated and having fun.  Think about it.