Rules, Regulations, and Utter Chaos

It's not anybody's fault, so don't apologize. Just because I have this crazy stressed out eye twitch going on, like the uni bomber, and my lower lip is trembling like a school girl. No, please, don't feel at fault. It was my choice to try and do it ALL today. And yes, I know, RV parks have rules. Living in a 5th wheel has its challenges, I must say.`

I had left the camper with 3 kids, 1 dog, 1 leash, 4 coats, 2 pairs of gloves, a laptop, 2 elementary workbooks, 10 crayons, 2 pencils, a bag of laundry, a pocket of quarters, a bag of soap, the keys to the door, a blanket for the littlest one, a stroller to shove it all on-in-under-around, 1 bike pump, and 2 scooters....whew!



















I had a well thought out plan. It was executed in tactical precision. I started the laundry first, taking the baby out of the stroller so she could help put in the quarters and soap, while the big girls circled us like sharks on their scooters. After this we headed out of the RV park to the "trail", with little highway lines painted on it so you know which side to walk on, so we could let the dog do his business and not worry about the little poo bag that city people use...(please, God, never lead me too far from grass and trees!). Then we headed back with perfect timing, to switch the wash loads.

It was upon our return to the office/laundromat that the catastrophe unravelled itself. Tenesee escaped from me after "helping" me push the start button on the dryer. Charlee Beth was around the building and I heard her start crying and yelling. I ran around the corner in time to see her run around the other corner calling my name in blood curdling shrieks that I yearned to mute with a magic remote. I turned on my heel and sped back the other way, pulling the wee one behind me by her arm. I ran into Hannah around the corner who ran away from me to go help her crying sister. I let out a string of words that were not calm and peaceful, but thankfully still under my breath at this point.

The huge full sized windows, running the length of the RV park office, were framing us perfectly this whole time. Boy, what a show.

I scooped up the baby and cornered the building to find Charlee piggy back on Hannah. The drama?...a scraped finger from a scooter crash. Wow. So we all hugged and I reprimanded and the sympathies went out to the injured sister as we made our way to the office, so I could get wifi reception and finally check my email, while the clothes dried.

We piled through the door and I tried to look less stressed than I felt and totally in control of my out of control situation. A stout lady with huge glasses and a grimace on her face stood watch at the front desk. She had one of those short hair cuts with an 8 inch long piece of hair hanging down in the back. I hadn't seen one of those since 1988. She waited until I got all of my belongings lugged through the door and was almost into the sitting room and then she let out a whiney, "OHhhhh....are you going to leave your dog out there?"
Oh, man! My dog! Oops.



I replied something about how I had a leash for him but had forgotten to put it back on and she said something about how he could cause harm to the other residents here and couldn't be left unattended even if he was on a leash. (Yes, he may just lick them to death!) Then I said something about how it figured and she said something about how she was sorry but it was just the rules and nothing personal.

She WAS sorry and so was I. I know the rules. I just wanted it all to work out differently than that. I wanted it to be easy. And, I think we were both sorry for two completely different reasons.

So, I turned around with all the kids, the smilingly dangerous dog, wheels of all shapes and sizes, the blanket and the coats with the children loudly asking questions that I wished they would WAIT to ask. We walked the quarter mile back to the camper to tie the dog up. Back to the far end of the park where I get no wifi service even though it's advertised on the website, flyer, and sign....which is the WHOLE reason I had to barge into their quiet little office in the first place!

But I retreated calmly and matter-of-factly. No cussing the lady with the hair tail, or the runaway baby, or the scraped finger, or the dog with the silly ears...because it's nobody's fault, really.

And what else do we have to do today, besides have a good lesson in patience, in learning to slow down, and loving our fellowman regardless of false advertisement and unsympathetic tones.

So we finally made it back to the office with no dog and a lighter load. I entered boldly even though I knew, that before it was all said and done, I'd be ticking them off once again. And the big kids did their math, language, and handwriting. Tenesee stole the door muffler and played "snake" with it and only cried once and screamed twice. And I?...well, I checked my email and my Facebook and made all the contacts I needed to make...and got a good idea for an article.

So the mantra is: Let my soul be steeled against frowns and open to smiles, and may my smile be the biggest one of all.

Oh, excuse me, there's a knock on the door. It's just the manager here to tell me that my dog is off the leash again....oh well. Better put on that smile!