Weekends should provide an opportunity to recharge ourselves, run down from all the hustle and bustle of the work week. Relax, read a book, spend some time with family, and find peace within ourselves. Instead, it has become just as busy as weekdays, if not worse. Yard work. House work. Running errands. Grocery shopping. In my case, I do most of my baking for the blog on Saturdays and Sundays when I have access to natural light for the photography… We need to slow down, stop and smell the bread baking, and just be in the moment for once. It shouldn’t be this difficult!
This morning, I attended my kids’ youth soccer games. It was freezing cold, made worse by gusting winds on a barren soccer pitch, but I did it for them, and I know they appreciated it. I didn’t grow up playing team sports. I was a fairly independent, solitary child, but I thought it would be important for my children to participate in something, anything. So we signed them up for soccer when each was 3 years old (the minimum age for micro soccer here). We believed this would be a great way for them to make some new friends and learn about working together as a team in the process. The first couple of years were quite difficult–my daughter was not on board with this plan initially. Now, however, they’re starting to really get the hang of it, and while they’ll likely never be star players, at least they’re out there having fun. That’s what counts.
Tonight, we’ll have a simple family meal (minus my husband, who is traveling for work). Probably spend a little time snuggling on the couch while watching a movie, and be a little silly. I know they won’t be 5 and 7 for long. I want to squeeze all the enjoyment out of it that I can, while I can.
How did you slow down this Saturday and let yourself absorb the moment, freeing your mind from the regrets of yesterday and the worries about tomorrow?
Great post! I just wrote about something similiar over at my blog. It isn’t difficult to slow down at all, we make it difficult.