#01 - This is Lily!

‘Household Manager.’ At least, that’s how she felt until recently. With three teenagers at home, a hardworking husband, and a clingy dog, Lily often finds herself bending over backwards these days. She struggles with hidden agendas and her children’s blunt opinions.

“Pfff! Spaghetti again?! I prefer bigger meatballs! Didn’t I already say that?!” -or- “Family gathering? Today? No way. I’m going to that football game with Vince!” -or- “Will you pick me up from that party tonight? What?! At 1 a.m.? Everyone’s staying until 3!”

Let things go a bit

Her husband Ben thinks she should let things go a bit more. “Let them be young. They have nice friends,” he reassures. But just the other day, Jack wasn’t home yet, and Ben panicked: “Where is that boy? These kids think they can do whatever they want around here!” You get it, right?

Lily stares out the window. It’s lightly raining outside. Inside, it’s dead quiet. But it looks like a tornado has swept through the kitchen. “Well, they’re all too busy to clean up, aren’t they?” Lily says with a sarcastic laugh.

Charlie, the dog, is sprawled out on the carpet, letting out a deep sigh. As if to say: stop complaining. Mmmm … he might be right!

Project Lily

Determined, Lily sits down on a stool at the kitchen table. This is the moment, she thinks, for a genius plan. She writes ‘PROJECT LILY’ in large capitals, surrounded by ‘Doing things together,’ ‘Trips,’ ‘Sports,’ ‘Parties’… Uh … what parties, she wonders. She nervously bites her pen, when suddenly the door flies open. Ella, the oldest daughter, walks in.

“Hey Mom,” she says, throwing her backpack onto the table. Her eyes briefly land on Lily’s paper. “What’s that? Project Lily?” she asks. “Uh, n-nothing sp-pecial,” Lily stammers, feeling caught. She awkwardly folds the paper and quickly stuffs it into her back pocket. “The economics teacher didn’t show up,” Ella continues, grabbing a chocolate bar from the cupboard and flopping onto the couch.

Phew … ‘Project Lily’ seems already forgotten. Though, in her back pocket is the beginning of a plan. Lily’s plan.

How about you? Do you have a plan?