Last week was a practice in slowing down, adhering to no schedule, and enjoying time with people I care about. For a whole week! In a hotel room I didn’t have to clean (just keep track of my stuff), meals I didn’t have to cook (though I missed it a little), in a place I’d never been before. It was lovely.
Less lovely was coming back to work on Monday morning, only slightly prepared for what the week would hold… work, more work. A busy after dinner schedule. Busy, but not a bad busy. A sort of way that I hate to call it “busy” because while I had things to do (laundry still to be finished, dishes to clean, meal prep) it was good things.
Board games with friends. The first night of a women’s small group. Small group with other newly married couples. And tonight dinner with a bunch of church ladies of all ages and walks of life. (I imagine. I haven’t gone yet). But, as per the title of this post, trying to get places on time requires me to put some thought in to travel time, traffic, and how to get myself out the door with everything I need.
And I know it’s not a unique thing. In warming up dinner, I plugged the small group address into my phone. Rounded to the nearest 5 min mark (13 min became 15). Established how long I would take to get ready (5 min, so tack that onto when I needed to get up and going). And it all worked out in my head, though potentially communicated better, to us getting there just a few minutes early. Perfect. We got to eat, relax, and still arrive on time
That’s not always how it works though. Even with dates and times in my calendar, as soon as I got home it was dinner + side dish for my event time. It was go go go to get dinner for my husband and friends, and the food I volunteered to bring with me (a decision I was less excited about all week until it turned out great). And as I’m ready to pack up and go…
5:28pm I’m ready! Time to pack up and go!
5:30 How long does it take to get there? When does it start?
It starts at 6:30. I just rushed around the last hour trying to get everything to come together, more stressed than enjoying the evening, and feeling a bit silly now that it’s all over…. That girl math didn’t work out so well.
But the day isn’t wasted, both meals I think turned out great, and despite doing a lot of social things this week and being a bit tired, I’m looking forward to meeting new people and having a meal with these ladies that I don’t think I’ve ever met before. How exciting.
If this is my season of saying yes, even when i doubt it, even if I’m a little tired, and even when it’s with people I don’t know and outside my comfort zone, I’m beginning to see the work he’s doing in me and around me to bring me closer to him and build a community around me. One close, as I value those far from me.