Inspired by IKEA Sundays | A Momma’s View (https://amommasview.wordpress.com/blog-eventschallenges/ikea-sundays/) The blog A Momma’s View has issued a fun challenge: share a little about an experience building something bought from IKEA.
Whatever you make of it
Life is like a box of ready-to-assemble furniture from some place like Ikea. It’s whatever you make of it.
I and my daughter spent a lot of time finding just the right cabinet for our shoes. After considering the many options in the enormous tightly-packed Ikea store, we settled on just the perfect one.
We’ve bought things there before and have had fun being together assembling this and that. There’s something bonding about shared experiences.
So, once we got our treasure home, we dove right into putting it together. Following the instructions step-by-step, we took turns using the various needed tools. We each like using the power screwdriver, as it’s so much easier than twisting each screw by hand.
With all the pieces carefully arrayed around the floor, the parts started to take shape. At nearly the same instant, we both realized the same thing: the parts were making a different cabinet! We had gotten the wrong one – not the one we had in mind!
What to do?
We had enough of the parts together already to see what we’d end up with. Instead of a one-drawer shoe cabinet, this was shaping up to be a two-drawer dresser. It included some sort of hidden shelf for whatnot.
We chose to go ahead and finish assembling it.
It’s now our most-wonderful shoe cabinet. It fits us better than what we originally had in mind.
The lesson for us: sometimes things don’t turn out like we expect. Rather than fight the reality, it’s worth having a look and considering whether it’s possible to accept things as they are, and if there’s a way to love things as they are.
It takes a lot of energy to fight reality. Accepting that we often make “mistakes”, those variations can actually turn out to be better than we had imagined.
I’m reminded of an affirmation I heard many years ago:
This, or something better, now manifests for me in totally satisfying and harmonious ways, for the highest good of all concerned.
– Shakti Gawain in Creative Visualization
Have fun building your life!
View Pacific 
I love that quote and am so glad the shoe cabinet surprised you with what was more useful!
Diana xo
Thanks, Diana,
Yes, that quote has been one I’ve liked for years. After all, life doesn’t seem to come with little instruction sheets or a toll-free number to call, so let’s let it be something great!
Vincent
Your approach to this adventure in building with your daughter reflects your and her wisdom and grace, Vincent. Thank you for the lovely reminder of how to live well. xo
Who would have thought that assembling IKEA furniture would lead to such a deep life lesson?! Love it! Thank you so much for sharing this!
Lessons abound – even at Ikea!!
Here’s something else I learned from that place, that doesn’t involve assembly.
They model spaces which have tiny measurements yet somehow look spacious. I’ve learned that I don’t have the same design sense, because when I get their things home, they all seem to occupy more space than I imagined when I was in the store.
So now, I measure the spaces before I go to the store. Also, I just buy less of their stuff. 🙂
Vincent
Hahaha! True!
I have noticed that when I try to fight reality, it is because of my arrogance… so, I usually try very hard not to take myself so seriously when things turn out differently from what I had planned. Your choice seemed so natural and without much fuss… I wish I could be more like that… God bless!