So, if I sounded a little tired the other night, I was. Today though, Sunday, was a good day. Balin and I have been practicing a ancient.....what would you call it - it's not a ritual but it's a experience. Traditionally it's been called Sabbath but I think that term has gotten a poor definition in religion. When I think of people "keeping the Sabbath" I think of my Mormon grandma who wouldn't do anything on Sunday except...read the scriptures...and I thought it all very boring and uber-religious. Yuck.
Some friends of mine have been practicing Sabbath for the last 6 months and their Sabbath looks completely different from what my stereotypes were. They had read a book called "Sabbath Rest" which basically says that we all need rest. That rest looks different for everyone but produces similar results; refreshment. There are two principles that Sabbath adheres to: doing nothing that is life-taking (let's see, the list is long; laundry, cleaning etc) and do things that are life giving. Those two loose principles leave so much room for authentic rest.
What this practice has looked like in Balin's and my life is Balin cooks on Sunday. It's life giving for him as he likes to cook and it's life giving to me since I cook the other 6 days. We play together as a family on Sundays - Uno is a classic game that we all enjoy. We go kayaking or at least it's on our "want to" list. We spend time with families that give us life and politely decline invitations that are more obligatory. I garden. Sometimes Balin works out. We go to Costco as a family after church and get groceries, usually yummy fresh fruit and veges. (Is there anything more life giving than having yummy, fresh food in the refrigerator?)
So today was just that, refreshing. The kids and I went to church. We went to Costco, had lunch with friends and then went home for a rest. We headed to Grandma and Grandpa up the street's house to say hello and then we went to the church picnic at the lake. It was a life giving day.
So I have to share one of the most life giving moments today. In the car going to the picnic, the kids and I did some preemptive discipline as I asked them what they thought would be appropriate behavior at the picnic. We decided on what would be good behavior and what would deserve getting to go to dessert when we drove up to the park. Perrin exclaimed in her most excited voice, "MOM, there's grass and bounce houses and look at all the people! This is going to be SO MUCH FUN!!!!" Right then and there I said - yes, yes it is. As soon as I parked Perrin hopped out of the car, ran to the grass and said, "Mom, can I go to the bounce house?" I said sure and off she went. Sam found his friend Caden and they ran off together to the bounce house. The rest of the evening it was as if I was the home post and they would run up to me, check in, and then run off again with their friends. Do you remember that as a kid? I do. It was the best ever to be able to play with your friends independently but you knew your parents were always available. So great. I was reinforced in my sense of safety when I was talking to our pastor Jon and he mentioned that they had men around the perimeter as security to make sure everyone was safe. How cool is that? Our kids were safe, fed and happy. I got a chance to chat with friends, meet new people (my favorite activity) and enjoy life.
My bucket is full.
Some friends of mine have been practicing Sabbath for the last 6 months and their Sabbath looks completely different from what my stereotypes were. They had read a book called "Sabbath Rest" which basically says that we all need rest. That rest looks different for everyone but produces similar results; refreshment. There are two principles that Sabbath adheres to: doing nothing that is life-taking (let's see, the list is long; laundry, cleaning etc) and do things that are life giving. Those two loose principles leave so much room for authentic rest.
What this practice has looked like in Balin's and my life is Balin cooks on Sunday. It's life giving for him as he likes to cook and it's life giving to me since I cook the other 6 days. We play together as a family on Sundays - Uno is a classic game that we all enjoy. We go kayaking or at least it's on our "want to" list. We spend time with families that give us life and politely decline invitations that are more obligatory. I garden. Sometimes Balin works out. We go to Costco as a family after church and get groceries, usually yummy fresh fruit and veges. (Is there anything more life giving than having yummy, fresh food in the refrigerator?)
So today was just that, refreshing. The kids and I went to church. We went to Costco, had lunch with friends and then went home for a rest. We headed to Grandma and Grandpa up the street's house to say hello and then we went to the church picnic at the lake. It was a life giving day.
So I have to share one of the most life giving moments today. In the car going to the picnic, the kids and I did some preemptive discipline as I asked them what they thought would be appropriate behavior at the picnic. We decided on what would be good behavior and what would deserve getting to go to dessert when we drove up to the park. Perrin exclaimed in her most excited voice, "MOM, there's grass and bounce houses and look at all the people! This is going to be SO MUCH FUN!!!!" Right then and there I said - yes, yes it is. As soon as I parked Perrin hopped out of the car, ran to the grass and said, "Mom, can I go to the bounce house?" I said sure and off she went. Sam found his friend Caden and they ran off together to the bounce house. The rest of the evening it was as if I was the home post and they would run up to me, check in, and then run off again with their friends. Do you remember that as a kid? I do. It was the best ever to be able to play with your friends independently but you knew your parents were always available. So great. I was reinforced in my sense of safety when I was talking to our pastor Jon and he mentioned that they had men around the perimeter as security to make sure everyone was safe. How cool is that? Our kids were safe, fed and happy. I got a chance to chat with friends, meet new people (my favorite activity) and enjoy life.
My bucket is full.
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