Monday Frags

We had a very short but much needed retreat this weekend.  It was a crazy long drive to spend one and half glorious days of eating and talking and laughing, but it was so incredibly worth it.  Here are a few things that I gleaned from the weekend.

It is so incredibly restful to not have to think about planning and preparing meals.  I was so thankful for whatever they put on the table.  I did not care one bit what they set out for us, I was just so happy to show up three times a day and get a full plate.  My kids have no idea how fortunate they are!  Isn't that just one of God's ironies.  You don't know how good you have it until it gets worse.

I really need a group of people that I can sit down and laugh with.  Most of the groups I am part of I am still trying to convince someone in the group that I am not a complete nut.  I do have a couple of folks that I can let it all hang out with.  I need to make them a regular part of my schedule.  If you are one of them and are reading this call me!  We need to do coffee.  This needs to happen almost as often as date night with Rick.

I also firmly believe that having conversations with people who have their faces painted, are 30 feet off the ground, are sitting in a box of toy balls, or are dressed in funky pajamas will be much more real than the conversations we have on any regular occasion.  It is hard to take yourself too seriously when you are terrified that your next step may be your last, or the person you are talking to has a very odd design across half their face.  I recently read a story about a man with a severe facial disfigurement.  Those people who could get past his deformity found him genuine and beautiful.  I find this dynamic fascinating.  It makes me contemplate the idea of a facial tattoo, at least in theory.

Women need to talk to some adult before going to sleep at night.  They need to talk a lot and it could be about anything.  If they don't, no one will get much sleep and the next day will become much more challenging.

Getting out of the routine is much needed and incredibly helpful to the soul.  Coming back to the routine has the potential to drag you back to earth with alarming speed.  I do believe that the net effect is positive.  It renews my hope that all of the messes I returned to will not be eternal, and that the rest eventually will be.