One of my favorite things about my new life is the unfolding of a Saturday morning. Me and my Sophie are up first. She has slept with one of the kids, grateful they’re there so she doesn’t have to sleep in her kennel. But she is listening for me. And as soon as she hears me stirring down she comes. We head out to McDonald’s in my pj’s and get me my morning coke. I enjoy the usual peanut butter toast and the Today show before anyone else knows a new morning has arrived.
The baby girl is always the first one up. We’ve had to teach her that the first time her eyes open she has to stay in bed and close them again. And that she can only get up when they open the second time. Otherwise she would beat me and Sophie up. She crawls on the sofa with me, settles underneath my arm and we talk about what we want our day to look like.
The boy is next. You can hear the pounding ofhis feet before you see his matted blond head. And he joins us. Careful not to sit too close to his sister and curls up under the other arm. The next three have to be woken up. And usually none of them are real grateful. But one by one we greet the day and enjoy whatever it holds.
I have to wonder if this is my Heavenly Father’s favorite time. Since the summer started and the kids are here more, I have taken to starting the day with him outside. We live at the end of a cu-de-sac. The only house for more than a street length. There I walk up and down the street in my slippers, my pj’s and we talk about what we want our day to look like. (The other day my neighbor caught me…I can only imagine what she thought.)
The wonders of the parent child relationship. What a richness it holds. What do we miss when we rush out into the day and don’t have a moment to breathe? Or stop.? Or reflect? Or to enjoy each other’s company? On the days when we’ve had to get the kids up in a frenzied way, race them out the door, something is lost…missed. I feel the same when I miss that time with my heavenly Father. I feel as if I’ve missed something.
I know mornings are crazy for most. I know there are days when just the delight of thirty extra minutes of rest is truly what our bodies and minds and hearts need most. But I also know that there is something so divine about the first part of our day with our Father. Sometimes it’s worth setting the clock just a little early to start our day with him. I’ve learned everyone in my family benefits. Some day’s their like, “Oh my…sister didn’t get her early morning walk in. Sure wish she had.”
My wish for you is that this remaining piece of summer would afford you Saturday morning snuggles with those little ones who rarely afford you that much time where their bodies in a dormant state. And those daily walks where the Father of your soul can reconnect with the heart He created.
