May 7

I looked out the window at some point this afternoon and my brain registered seeing Adam in the hammock and Isaac up on the hill pulling weeds from the joints between the stepping stones.

My initial response was to think 'aw, look at my boy up there pulling weeds all on his own. What a good kid.'

And he is indeed a good kid. An excellent one, in fact. 

But what my brain registered wasn't the reality of the situation, as I learned at dinner. No, the reality was that Adam was up on the hill pulling weeds and then Isaac eventually joined him. What I thought was Adam lying in the hammock was actually him walking by the hammock after depositing an armload of weeds in the green bin.

My initial interpretation was only partly correct; in order to get the full story, I had to ask about it -- I needed help. Life is so often like this: we think we know what's going on when we actually don't. We make judgments about people or situations without knowing the full story. So today I'm thankful for the reminder that I need to step back and see the full picture rather than jumping to conclusions.