For the past few weeks, our family (well, the adults in our family - the children have been unwilling passengers) have been swimming in a sea of work. It was Friday when we popped our heads up for a brief attempt at rest. We failed dismally.
Why do we struggle so much to relax?
There are a couple of reasons. Firstly, our home is our office. Hence, home is no longer a restful haven, and any rest to be gained must be done away from the house, lest we drown in a sea of phone calls.
Secondly, working in our small town means that we cannot simply go to the local park/cafe etc. Stepping out in town invariably results in us running into at least several people from our congregation, all of whom immediately assume we're bludging. So no walks down the road to the playground for us!
Thirdly, I have realised that I grew up with bad recreational habits. In the city, the main form of recreation is shopping. Shopping in a large mall is not a relaxing activity, particularly if you are carting around small children and a reluctant husband. On our stretched budget, it's also far too expensive. And that's completely forgetting the futility of the activity anyway...
The fourth, and biggest problem with our ability to relax is that we haven't had the time to plan what to do. Days off hit us like an ambush, and we waste most of it wondering where to go. Our most recent rest day devolved into a visit to a Christian bookshop and a drive to a furniture store to pick up a bookshelf. Hardly restful!
Mind you, I now have more space for my SCRADD-neglected reading matter...
1 comment:
We have taught our now 2 year old to love cafes - so when we really need to get out we bundle everyone up and go out for a quick cafe visit - while he drinks a chocolate milkshake, we have a hot cuppa and maybe even a mag read. Now we just have to teach our second kid...
and tell your congregation you are modelling good re-creation - which a sabbath God is pretty keen on.
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