Thursday's Daily Record Column - Ordinary Moments
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Life seems to be full of ordinary moments. I get up when the alarm goes off with high hopes for my day. But most of my days are filled with the tedious, not the tantalizing.
There is the laundry that is building up in that hamper, and piles of clean clothes on the couch.
The bills that are due, hmmm, yesterday? Oh no! And the crud that has built up on the stove top that seems to have crusted as hard as cement.
There are lunches to pack, dishes to wash, and unknown food substances crunching on my kitchen floor that I must attend to.
And the errands and work. Let’s see. Get ready to teach class, write my column and don’t forget to get gas in the car. Groceries, yes, we need groceries. So that means a trip to Buehlers. And there are prescriptions to pick up at the pharmacy and mail at the post office.
I seem to be drowning in my to-do list, in my ordinary moments, and if I am not careful, they will pull me under.
Fourteen years ago, I learned a lesson about ordinary moments. One I need to be reminded of today.
Back then, Mike and I were young and married, and I was pregnant with our first child, Hannah. We were the youth group advisors for the teens in our church. We decided to take them on a mission trip to inner city Chicago to clean and renovate some churches in poverty stricken areas of the city.
On the eight hour drive west, I lectured the teens, telling them they were not to slack off. That they were to accomplish the work we set out to accomplish at each and every job site.
Then, on our first morning in Chicago, sitting on the front porch of our host home, our missionary guide began telling us where we would go that day. And I can’t for the life of me remember if it was tarring a roof, painting a fence or planting a garden. What I do remember is what he told the kids about ordinary moments.
He told us that the work was not important. Not important! Can you believe that? I think I choked on my coffee. He told us what was important was the people. Not the work, the people.
That if someone from the church came to talk to them while they were working, they were to stop working and give their full attention to that person. Put down the paint brush and listen, talk and share.
I learned a lot on that trip. And I think I need to go back there. I have felt myself being pulled under by my to-do list, drowning in my own ordinary moments.
Last weekend, Mike and I went out on a date with Brian and Sharon, dear friends of ours. We ate way too much endless shrimp at Red Lobster, and met two young waiters who ended up sharing in our silly jokes, laughter and fun. By the end of the evening, they pulled up chairs as we exchanged stories, advice and laughter.
And for one precious evening, we were reminded of what life is truly about.
The tedious tasks of our days can become tantalizing if we simply remember that our ordinary moments are not really that ordinary at all if we take the time to recognize the extraordinary people around us.
Catch up with Trish at www.TrishBerg.com.
Posted by Trish Berg 5:00 AM
Labels: Daily Record Column
Thanks for sharing this.
From shrimp at Red Lobster to time with the waiters, those are the special moments. I think people wait to get the to-do list done before accepting miracles from God which by the way, they only seem to think are big things like winning the lottery. Not so! God gives us little things during our humdrum days to enjoy.
Would you be interested in being a guest blogger on my blog and either reposting this same post or writing another one on something similar? (your choice)
Have a blessed day!
Denise
Blessings from Above
http://blessingsfromabove2.blogspot.com
Thanks! T