Keeping the Sabbath and My Awesome Daughter

Keeping the Sabbath as a day of rest is something I have always struggled with. Let's be honest; if there were 8 days in a week I'd work all of them, so I think a day of rest is something we must force ourselves to take. We know the Sabbath is for our own benefit, so why do we find it so hard to set aside our worldly cares and retreat to that quiet place?

Like I said, it takes a deliberate effort to make it happen, otherwise I'd just come home from church and function on auto pilot like I do every other day of the week- dishes, laundry, cleaning, organizing, pacing- and feel just like I do all the other days of the week- busy, distracted, irritable at times, and just plain exasperated, only to find myself wishing, at the end of the day, that I would've taken the time to listen to my kids, sit on the couch and watch them play, or on days like today, watch the rain out my window. Well, with another pregnancy underway, five kids to maintain, and a house I've decided will never be clean to my satisfaction, I've decided that now is as good a time as any to start taking my Sabbath.

Last Sunday it was sitting down in my favorite chair in the living room, watching Forrest play a board game with the kids, and reading an entire issue of Martha Stewart Living from cover to cover without getting up, fantasizing about all the things I can do once my kids are out of the house (Martha's good for inspiration like that.)

Today it was a nap, well, more of an in-and-out state of consciousness for two hours on the couch, listening to Mormon Tabernacle Choir on Pandora Radio and my kids playing outside in the rain while Rachel and Kaitlyn slept (you can only get so much of a nap with five kids in the house, but I take what I can.)

Here's where my awesome daughter comes in: right at the most meditative part of my rest, the boys come jostling through the back door, wet and covered in dirt. Just as I think I'm going to have to get up off of the couch and face real life, I hear Ashlee quietly telling them to leave their clothes at the back door and head upstairs, where she starts them a bath. I let out my breath, thankful to have earned a few more moments of sleep. No sooner had I thought so than I heard Rachel begin to fuss (probably from the boys going upstairs.) No fear, Ashlee is on top of that one, too. She quietly retrieves her from her crib, brings her downstairs, and feeds her a warm bowl of baby oatmeal. Mid-feeding, I hear her go upstairs and give the boys a two-minute warning for their bath. This is when I'm thinking how important our example is to our children, as I feel I am witnessing a mini-version of me managing the household... and she's doing a fine job. The boys get out of the bath, dress, and come downstairs, where Ashlee has smoothies waiting for them at the table. Wow, this is awesome. I'm almost starting to feel guilty for staying on the couch... but not really. After all, it is the sabbath, and she's doing it all so willingly. So there I stay for a while longer, listening to the "tink-tink" sound of pellets feeding into the pellet stove and the beautiful piano music coming softly from the computer, reverbrating to my very soul.

It is now that I begin to think that Heavenly Father knew what he was doing when he commanded us to take a Sabbath, for I know that, for myself, it truly takes this relaxed, restful state to fully feel the spirit and meditate upon the deeper meaning of life. A state that we would not often find ourselves in throughout the week. A place that we inwardly long for, but find hard to obtain. As far as the dishes and laundry, I haven't quite figured them out, or how they're going to get done on Sundays. But I do know what I have felt from taking these last couple of Sundays for what they are intended to be- a day of rest- I have found a place that is healing to mind, body and soul.