Stopped up Drains

I've noticed that things can get stopped up rather quickly in life, and that every now and then we have to muddle through all the mess to get it cleaned up.  It's like a drain.  As long as the water keeps flowing and whatever gets poured down it stays small enough, then the water takes the debris and carries it away from the house.  Sometimes, though, something happens and the flow is interrupted.

 We have a garbage disposal in our kitchen sink.  I know it's not really a big deal these days, as many homes in the USA have them.  I crack eggs, toss the shells in the disposal, and let the kids know I'm about to run the disposal.  I have to be careful to count before I do, or else Nathaniel will come unglued from the sound it makes, due to his hypersensitive hearing.  So I turn on the hot water, count to three, and I flip the switch.  Then I hear the loud whir of the garbage disposal as it churns loudly and grinds the egg shells and what not into tiny shards and then carries them away.  I turn off the control switch, and my sink and drain are clear again.

But sometimes lately I have flipped the switch and nothing happens.  There's no sound, no movement, no power.  Nada.  Zip.  I have to remember to turn the switch back off again, reach down into the pipe and pull out what I was going to send down the drain, grab it, and toss it into the trash can.  If I don't, then as I run water, the sink gets all clogged up, and I can't get anything cleaned.  Instead, the water will get stagnant, nasty, and smelly.  Those little ingredients that are stuck in the disposal will cause havoc if they're not taken out.  The disposal is giving out slowly, and eventually we will have to replace it.  For the time being, however, we play "will it or won't it" with the switch and hope it clears out the debris.

Every now and then we have to take stock in our lives.  Do we have anything clogging up the flow of the matter?  Do we have resentment, unforgiveness, or fear backing up our hearts and minds?  These are things that can keep us from living productive lives, from living our intended purpose.  Can we let those situations that hurt us go through the grinder where it shreds them into little debris that can flow away without harming our pipes?  Or do we cut off the power of forgiveness from doing its job?  Eventually, all the crud has to go through our pipes or be dug out if we want to be able to function properly.  Though sometimes it seems hard, almost impossible, I'd rather flip that switch and let everything be shred into nothing of consequence so I'm not hurting from my own actions as well as from the harmful circumstances.

Oh...did I forget to mention that I also have a compost container?  Evidently, all that organic trash matter eventually degrades and becomes wonderful organic soil for plants.  In fact, it is all that "trash" which can make the most fertile ground.  Where there is forgiveness, there is dissolution, and that which seemingly caused so much damage in fact, in the end, is what causes us to bear the most fruit...if we give it the chance.