I breathe in. Breathe out. My head is reclined against the back of the lawn swing, one of my most -used birthday presents, and I sway gently back and forth. I hear the soft flapping of the leaves as the wind skitters through. My eyes are closed, but I can still ‘see’ the sunlight ripple across my face as I move through the shadows of the leaves. The breeze lifts the ends of my hair to tickle my cheek. Still I breathe.
I feel space all around me; open, no walls, no ceiling, free of confinement. I feel light surround me; bright, uplifting, fulfilling light. Peace engulfs me – body and soul, and I breathe it in.
I need this. It is the best 10-20 minutes of my day. The bills waiting to be paid, school supplies waiting to be ordered, science experiments littering the dining room, dishes piled on every flat surface of the kitchen, church assignments coming due, articles to write, business accounting awaiting catching up, websites to design, birthdays to plan, and hyper little boys bouncing off the walls and furniture – they all melt away in this moment. In this moment, I can breathe. I can calm. I can reconnect.
It is here that I can refocus. I can pray and reconnect. Here the world melts away, and I can turn inward … and upward. This is how I step away from life – and listen. This is where all doubts dissolve. In this moment, I am attune to who I am and who I am meant to be. Here I am open to direction of what I need to do next.
Life is crazy for each of us. I know your version of craziness isn’t the same as is mine, but we all have times when we don’t know what we are doing or what we are supposed to do next.
Face it! More times than we care to admit, we reach a destination or even a certain part of our day where we are frenzied and breathless, like we just arrive on the back of a Harley. We have kids, spouses, friends, co-workers, fellow church members, strangers, radios, ear buds, computers, TVs, bills, schedules, assignments, appointments, sports games, dance lessons, carpools, dishes and laundry – all screaming for attention, and they want it NOW. Not to mention the gunk we see on the baseboards, when we do actually take time to sit down.
But the voice that is the most important is the one that is too often drown out by all the rest. The voice within.
So I encourage you to take several moments right now. Step out into your back yard, on to your balcony, your roof, or simply a large, well-lit room with the window open. Set your timer if you need to. (Give it to your kids. Tell them you are going to go drown in the quiet and they can come and rescue you when the timer goes off.) But go. Breathe. Ponder. Clear. Focus.
The spirit needs space – away from the world –to renew. The body needs light – to uplift and rejuvenate. The soul needs peace – to meet all that it must face … with power and strength.
Seek space, light and peace.
“Be still and know that I am God.”
Sunshine along the Way 