Loving God and Loving Others

the long way home Driving up to school this morning I am struck how in-a-hurry I usually am to finish the task of school-drop-offs. I am in my walking clothes, eager to get home so that I can get my two mile walk with John done before the sun is completely overhead. The temperature rises quickly in April, and there is a small window before the trees stop offering shade and the heat is nearly unbearable for this Seattle girl. I’m up early these days. The sun streams brightly  through our windows and the loud-chirping of the common myna calls me to rise. I cover my head and try and finish my dream and catch a few extra minutes because I know that once I am up there is no nap ahead until the late evening hours. My kids still love their beds and are mostly unresponsive to the morning 6:30am call as their home-schooled bodies are not used to rising so early. To which I want to tell them of children who must get up much earlier but I am usually unconvincing i...

A cold gets the best of me and I hole myself up in my room for the morning to get over it. I really don't have time to be sick. (Can I hear an Amen?) My kids get themselves up and start their schoolwork for the day. My new friend is the kleenex box and I can't even find the energy to give instructions to my kids, I can only hope they know what to do. My husband helps them start their day over FaceTime, praying for them before breakfast. Modern technology is amazing. I should confess that I'm terrible at resting. I lay in my bed and my mind launches in a million directions and it takes great discipline to not get out of bed and clean up the mini-piles that have assembled around the house. When things are uncontrollable in life I often look for things I can control. Too bad we just moved to this country so there aren't many messy spaces to reorganize, a habit I confess to have when I can't do much else. Why is it that control is my first response and not rest?  ...