Recharging the Batteries

This past week was stressful. Mostly because the potty training was not going well at all. And then put on top of that lost shirts and lunch meal planning and feeling like I was getting nothing done... let's just say I was not my best self. 

So in a pleading phone call I asked my husband to take sometime off work so I could be by myself and recharge.

Now, since Wednesday, when I decided not to continue with the potty training, for now, the needing to recharge feeling wasn't as strong, but I still felt it was important to do something for me so I did.

I wasn't sure what I wanted to do. I don't often get the chance to sit and think about what I want to do just for me. (That's not me complaining or feeling "oh poor me" or a call for sympathy, it's just the reality of being a busy mom of three, and that is okay.) I knew I wanted to do something active. The weather was so beautiful. I knew I wanted to do something that I haven't done yet that I really wanted to. So, I decided to walk part of the Trans Canada Trail, from the St. Jacob's Market to the actual town of St. Jacobs.

I love the idea of the Trans Canada Trail. It is neat to think that the trail I'm walking on could eventually connect me to places all across Canada. And that's no small feat considering, to quote the band The Arrogant Worms, "Canada's really big".

The section of trail I was on today wasn't super busy. I saw a couple of cyclists and a family sitting on one of the benches. But that was it. Just me, the trail, and the sound of birds and cars. This section of trail runs beside a highway, so it was rather loud. Not the best for soul searching in nature, but I'll take it.

I love the little curves under the canopy of trees. This will look beautiful in a couple weeks with fall colours

It's a bit fuzzy but this is one of the views of a farm from the trail.

I am looking forward to trying out some of these trails soon.

The Conestoga river. There was a nicer view at a different spot but people were there and I didn't want to intrude.

It is so important that we take the time once in a while to charge our batteries, and if possible, to find out what that thing would be that recharges us. When you are busy and have other people to be concerned with it can be hard to find what helps to refuel you as you are busy helping to refuel others.

While I was on my walk, I realized how much I missed these strolls in nature. When I was growing up we lived on 80 acres of wilderness. We had made our own trails throughout the property and every Sunday and sometimes more we were off on a walk to the see the beautiful spots we had discovered. We had a waterfall, an old mine, and a great loop through what we called the 12 acre wood. It was great to walk, to challenge yourself with the hills, to see the beauty of nature and the change of seasons. It was nice and peaceful and when I think about those walks I think of bliss and love. I definitely was living the good life. 

Now the thought of going for a walk with family does not incite feelings of joy. We have kids who complain about walking, or who walk too slow or walk too fast, or don't want to wear proper foot wear, or need water, or want to bring dolls or want in the stroller or out of the stroller, or are hungry, or are needing a bathroom even though they just went, and on and on. Not very relaxing is is. This walk taught me that I don't always have to drag my family along. It is okay for them to drop me off somewhere and me to just go by myself and reconnect with me. And by doing that they are probably going to get a better me in the process. Eventually I will invite them along, but for now I need to do these things for me.

There are so many other things that people can do to recharge. What do you like to do?

Finding Joy at the Park

Last Tuesday the girls and I met up with some friends at Victoria Park in Kitchener. They have installed a new playground which is a lot of fun.

One of the new features of the playground is a structure that looks like a boat. The kids sit on it and then an adult can rock it back and forth. Now most parents usually just move it unenthusiastically just to rock it while waiting for their child to get off and then passing the rocking onto the next suckered adult. I know it is not a very positive way to look at it, but you as parents, you know what I'm talking about.

Well on this Tuesday the kids were in for a treat. There was a young man there, probably in his late teens who I'm assuming had some sort of mental special need, who was able to transport the kids into a world of fun on the high seas. He would stand near the entrance of the ship and yell "All aboard". The kids would rush on and take their positions. Then he would walk around this ship doing the safety check, mostly to make sure that no one was underneath. He would then get into position, ask someone to "ring the bell" and off he would go rocking the boat. The kids would then laugh and have fun as the boat moved up and down causing them to sway, loose balance and just have fun. After a few minutes the young man would stop. The kids who wanted to get off would and new kids who wanted to join would get on. He would then start again with "All aboard" shouted in this incredible booming voice.

While this boat thing is usually popular, I must admit I had never seen so many kids on it at once as when this young man was doing his thing. The kids just loved it. I think he loved it too. They were all just having fun and experiencing pure joy.

It got me thinking about how we as hardened adults of the world don't, as often as we should, take the time to let ourselves go enough to experience these pure joy moments. We are hustling and bustling trying to do things as fast as we can to move onto the next things. At the park I am usually on high alert at all times because Miss P likes to run, and she can run fast and silently. Seriously she must be part ninja or secret agent. Her agility, stealth and speed is quite astonishing. Anyways, because of Miss P's super set of skills it is hard to relax and really enjoy the moments at the park because I feel so preoccupied with Miss P's location. We miss out on a lot of moments of joy when we are distracted or moving too fast.

After this experience I am trying to make a conscious effort to slow down and look at the world through my kids eyes. Take in their joys. This past Friday Miss G and I had to go to the mall to find a bathing suit. Trying to find a kids bathing suit in July is an impossible task, which is kind of dumb because it is still summer and they should still have bathing suits a plenty, in my opinion anyways. So we had to go to store to store. I was feeling like I just wanted to rush it because I just wanted to get out of the mall, it is not my happy place. But Miss G showed me that even in the Mall small and simple pleasures can be found. We stood and watched the fountains for a bit. She then saw some tiles in a cool pattern that she had to investigate. Seeing the mall through her eyes helped me slow down and enjoy the experience a bit more.

I don't know why we feel we need to be running ourselves ragged, trying to get things done lickity split. While there are times when that is necessary, most of the time it is not. No wonder there are so many people stressed, strained, feeling overworked and depressed. Sometimes you really need to slow down and appreciate what's around you and find the small and simple joys that life is freely and constantly offering you if you just slow down enough to recognize it.

So thank you young man, whoever you are. You made a lasting impact on me and all the children you helped that day. Never loose your happy spirit. You are special beyond measure and you made everyone around you feel special too.

Don't Look for the Living Among the Dead

Sorry for the late post. Yesterday we were at a friends house with a bunch of other families having fun. We didn't get home until later than I was expecting.

It is Easter time. It is a time of rebirth for the earth and for the soul. For me it is also a time I reflect upon the resurrection of Jesus Christ and what that means in my life. The following is a video that portrays that well.

In the New Testament account of Christ's resurrection, an angel says to Mary, "Why look for the living among the dead?" Now while in this account he is referring to the body of Jesus, this line can be applied to our lives and habits, whether Christian or not.

Ruts, we all get into them. For me, it is with tidying and getting rid of stuff. It seems I can never get the job completed or things accumulate again. Clearly what I am doing isn't working, yet I seem to use the same tactics. This is me looking for the living among the dead. I am doing the same things over and over, yet, I'm not gaining new results. I'm not gaining happiness. I am not living.

The same can be said for having too much stuff. If we accumulate too many things, we are not able to live. Instead we are surrounded by dead things. Objects that don't give off a living energy.

What we need to do when we are stuck looking for the living among the dead is looking at things a different way. Having a paradigm shift. Thinking of ways to inject a living energy. If you are feeling devoid of energy and feel listless it is time to examine what in your life is causing you to look among the dead instead of the living. So that could be examining your relationships, your jobs, the way you do things.

Now, I am not saying you should end relationships or quit jobs, but just reexamining them and seeing what can be done to be re-energized in them.

Often when the energy in something is "dead" it is often because it is stagnant or not moving. If you are not moving at all, there will be no energy, and without energy there is no life. So think of something creative to jazz things up. In relationships that can be date night, a list of ideas can be found here. An article by Richard Paul Evans says that we should ask "how can I make your life better today?" That is injecting life into things. That is looking for living among living.

In the world, things that seem dead actually bring forth life. Compost, rotting logs, burned forests, these seem dead. But when you look at them more closely there is actually a lot of life going on in them. And from that, new life and growth can flourish. So if there is something in your life that seems dead, look at it more closely, see the life that is in it and use that as a springboard to newer and greater things.

Have a Happy Easter!