I have many kid's books that I adore... Miss Spider's Tea Party, One Fish Two Fish, Where the Sidewalk Ends, and yes even the cute and colorful, "If you Give a Mouse a Cookie".
In this story, a tiny little mouse eventually wears out an energetic young boy by his never-ending request for cookies, glasses of milk, straws to drink the milk and more. This fun and somewhat exasperating story has had much in common with my last week.
Only I don't have a mouse to blame on all the requests at hand. The one setting up all the extra 'requests' has been none other than... me, myself and I.
After a month and a half of working on a large mural project, it was completed on Saturday. There was some holiday shopping for work and my family accomplished and Sunday was a marathon day of Christmas program rehearsal, Vespers worship, Lucia shopping, Lucia and then a neighborhood Christmas dinner/sing-a-long and vollyball play-off tonight. In the midst of all this, my hubby's back went out and that required some extra TLC and a chiropractor visit in addition to a quick mix and bake of 4 dozen cookie exchange cookies in the morning. Whew!
I'm thankful my Christmas tree is up. I'm thankful that many of the to-do's on my list are beginning to wrap up an will be completed before the Christmas holiday. I will be comping some time between Christmas and New Years to make up for the rush of the last few weeks and this time will be so lovely to have with my family.
I find myself remembering simpler days when my kids were small and we did not have much Christmas cash, so I'd make hard tack candy and cookies for all my husband's and my co-workers. I'd paint and craft the days before Christmas away and have so many beautiful things to give away by December 25th. I feel too rushed this year and find myself wanting to slow that calender wayyyyyy down, so there is more time for stillness.
Somehow though, I do find stillness and joy in the busy days. I see it in the lovely snowfall on Friday evening. I see it in the gleaming smiles of the children getting ready for the program next Sunday. I see it all around me, if I take the moment to look.
So when I get the next request from a mouse, or myself - I will pause, be still and press into the task at hand a look for the joy to be found in the always changing, waiting while working days until Christmas.
Comments
See--I don't imagine it FEELS wonderful when you're chasing your own tail, but gosh.....you get to have your hands in so many AWESOME tills right now.
Be still and know.
With every smile, with every candle lit, with every ring of a bell... Be still and know.....
Thanks ma'am.
I can be still now. :-)