Time...We say we never have enough. Time...It is what we want most, but what we use worst....
Time has a wonderful way of showing us what is really important. And over the course of "time" (7 weeks and 5 days to be exact!), that is exactly what has been happening in our lives.
Since Chris came home, he has made great strides in his recovery. As much as he wanted to jump right back into his life at school and on the basketball court, God had better plans. Between appointments, holidays and inclement weather days, he was forced to start slowly (which was much easier than me having to be the bad guy!). However, he is now back to work full-time and back on the court as well. Most importantly, he is feeling great...minimal headaches, his vision is constantly improving, and his energy level is back. His only complaint is that he is "wasting away" because he isn't allowed to lift any heavy weights yet. If you know my hubby, you know that weight lifting is nearly as important as eating to him. Additionally, you know that he lifts SO he can eat... in large quantities. :)
Perhaps the most important thing that has happened through this process is a change to the way that our family views TIME. I truly feel we all have a greater sense of what is truly important. I find myself sitting with Cenah and reading or doing puzzles, or turning the TV down or off to listen to someone talk to me rather than checking social media, putting that load of laundry away, or returning that email. To be honest, no one will suffer if my clothes remain in the basket or there is dog hair on the floor. And if you stop at my house and are offended by things laying around, or a little dirt, then you probably aren't my friend anyway. If I died tomorrow, I would want my child's memory of me to be that "my mommy always tried to spend TIME with me", instead of "my mommy was too busy with laundry, checking Facebook, cleaning, blah blah blah". It is important to me that my family knows I am present...not just in body, but mentally and emotionally as well.
Part of our new view of TIME, resulted in selling our half of our business. While we loved serving our community this way, we also realized that the hours Chris was putting in were not conducive to family life, or his health. We are already seeing the positive results of this decision. It is amazing what a difference stress reduction and sleep can make in a person's overall demeanor. It is refreshing to see my husband's new view of TIME as well. My heart fills with joy each time I see him wrestling on the floor with our daughter, hear him speaking words of encouragement to his sons', or sit with him as he talks about the people he is praying for due to special circumstances in their lives. These are things we have been missing, because we let our over-busy lives steal our sense of how precious TIME really is. We were using it all wrong, wishing for more, never having enough, burning the candle at both ends and watching it pass us by. In some ways, as painful and frightening as it was, Chris's health crisis was a blessing.
At Christmas, I received a gift from our son Caleb and his fiancee, Mara (okay, it was really weird typing that. But, yes, we have a child getting married!!). It was a wall-hanging, and I cried when I opened it because of what it said. It was perfect for what we were going through at the time, and it hangs in my kitchen near my dining room table as a constant reminder. It says, "Everything changed the day they figured out there was EXACTLY enough time for the important things in life".
Time is so precious. Once you have used it, you can never get it back, so use it wisely. I challenge you to take a good look at how you are using your time. The way we spend our time defines who we are. If there was a dictionary of people, would you be happy with your definition? If not, maybe it's TIME for you to evaluate and rediscover what is really important in your life.
