I woke up to an empty house, as everyone had gone to church and my intent was to start Sabbath off with a little solitude before being with family later. My in-laws back yard looks into a fantastic green forest. With a warm cup of coffee I sat down towards the view. I noticed that Sally and Jay had quite the set up of bird feeders hanging from a rope that connected from a tree to their house. I was amused by this as the free birds came and went for their proportion of seeds they could fly away with. Very peaceful. As I realized how satisfying this experience was, a lovely hummingbird came right up to the window, and I'm talkin' RIGHT up to the window. There was a feeder connected to the window and the bird must not have seen me. Oh it was amazing! The presence of one hummingbird was enough but I was fortunate to see 4 in the time that I sat in that lazy boy chair! In some peculiar way, I felt connected in those moments of watching those birds. Connected to God, connected to myself, and connected to creation. I felt as if it was an invitation into a day set apart from the other six.
Later in the day I was excited to spend some time with my niece. It was just the two of us as her parents went out for a movie. Alexis is around 19 months and a bundle of JOY! She is at the stage where I am content with just watching her as she discovers the world. Since our time in Mexico, her words and coordination have increased. I am thinking in the future that part of my Sabbath rhythm is to spend time with kids. There is nothing like their imagination and ability to experience the here and now. I mostly observed but one precious moment is when we had a tea party with her cool talking tea set. Oh the laughter and light hearted play that comes with being a child. I love knowing that my niece is a role model for me in how to play well. One last experience that is worth noting in regards to this day is when Alexis woke up from her nap. You can imagine that she is fairly active during play but this time I was blessed to participate in tender cuddles. I picked her up out of her crib and we sat in a chair for at least 20 minutes. The feeling is almost indescribable. The feeling of her soft breaths and the rhythm of rocking in the chair...that is a memory I hope to remember. Since I don't see Alexis every week, this was a special gift. It is those moments that feel set apart, uncommon to the day to day life. Even if that was my own child...I can imagine the gift is there for parents that see their kids day to day. I can imagine it is these moments that help parents set aside the fears and frustrations of raising a child and remember the goodness of God in the spaces between the challenges of being a parent.
BLESSED indeed
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