It's ironic that I find myself writing a post on slowing down time, when just a couple of weeks ago I wrote on longing for these little years to be gone. But hopefully I find an empathetic ear out there who understands the daily battle between longing to be child-free and not wanting to wish my life away.
About six months ago I read the book "One Thousand Gifts" by Ann Voskamp. I am actually borderline embarrassed to admit I even read it. I am not a huge fan of hers, and her style of writing is kind of annoying to me. But, if you can get over her overly melancholic way of expressing herself, what she has to say is pretty awesome. You can find her blog here.
Anyway, the whole point of her book can be summarized by her following quote:
"Giving thanks for one thousand things is ultimately an invitation to slow time down with the weight of full attention."
A second quote by Mark Buchanan that compliments Ann Voskamp's previous quote is:
"I cannot think of a single advantage I've gained from being in a hurry... through all this haste I thought I was making up time. It turns out I was just throwing it away."
The moment we start rushing through our days, trying to keep up with laundry, dinner, and our never-ending to-do list... yes, our life gets lived out effectively, but there is nobody there to enjoy it.
Yesterday was one of those days. My sweet children were there usual selves, and had I continued doing all that "needed to be done," I would have never been able to savor the precious gift of simplicity through them.
1. Getting to see my little girl imitate the only mom she knows to be hers, and liking what I see.
2. The way my fearful girl learns to overcome simple fears such as getting close to a cooking stove.
Querida Lauren: Son muchos los momentos en los cuales una mama quisiera que el tiempo volara (para tener mas tiempo da hacer cosas para ella, etc)Ni te sientas culpable por eso. Al final, el tiempo que dedicas a tus hijos los rebasa por mucho!! Un abrazo :D
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