Let Me Tell You One Thing About Order
>> Friday, October 9, 2009
Guest post from Leila at Like Mother, Like Daughter
So last time when I talked about Order and Wonder, did you get a kind of anxiety attack, as if you thought I was saying that something like this
is what I had in mind?
Don't be silly. :)
Order means first things first. So... yes, of course, stuff like making sure the kids are fed and keeping things neat and tidy.
{Long ago we had a next-door neighbor who would come over (he was about the age of my parents) and first thing neaten up all the reading material on my coffee table, which was a lot -- magazines, mail, books, everything just thrown on there.
Since it wasn't like this
I thought it wasn't worth making look nice. (Not that I like that ugly thing.)
But he would make tidy stacks of all my stuff, and then sit down and chat with me. (He was a funny guy.)
You know what -- it made my living room look instantly better!}
Anyway, I was going to tell you a very important step towards getting Order and Wonder for your home and family.
You are probably already doing this, but maybe you haven't quite realized how important it is and will be in the future for your life together.
If there were one thing I would tell a young family --
one thing I would tell a family that was having trouble --
one thing I would tell a family on the brink of splitting up --
one thing I would tell a family that was worried about the teens --
one practical thing I would tell any family --
Make Sundays a day of rest.
And only the mother can really make this happen, week in and week out. Only the mother can make it possible for the crazy activities to stop, for the family to worship together, and for the family to sit down together for a meal. The father can want all these things, and ask for them, but if the mother doesn't make the practical effort, they won't happen.
And if the mother isn't enjoying herself, no one is.
Anyway, we don't have a blog called Like Father, Like Son. We're talking to YOU.
So yes, it's another thing you have to do! But it's the best thing.
Even if Dad has to work a shift on Sunday, even if the kids have soccer, even if there is so much laundry that if you missed this day you would never be found again under a mountain of dirty clothes, do something to make the day -- at some point-- a real day of the Lord.
Now, some Sundays that might mean a real old-fashioned Sunday dinner after Church with plenty of relaxation in the form of reading the paper, visiting with extended family, and playing games.
Some Sundays it might mean an early Mass with the day spent burning brush and enjoying the sunshine after a long winter.
Not to mention any families that might have spent a recent Sunday this way, and enjoyed every moment of it! {Note our two-toned house? One side a year, baby :) }
You might have roast beef; you might have leftovers. You might have friends over, you might be "just us". It might be brunch, it might be a late supper.
But you all sit down together, light a candle or two, and take a deep breath. (You might sit down on a blanket after a hike and have a picnic!)
Correct your children's manners during the week, and try not to do too much correcting at the Sunday meal!
Try to enjoy.
You might spend the whole afternoon visiting Grandma at assisted living or helping neighbors build their porch.
I don't care what you do. I don't care if you don't have nice china. I don't care if this has to happen at 7 am or 8 pm to happen at all. I don't care if it's just an hour out of the whole day.
The point is to make this day a day different from the others. And if you prayerfully do this, however modestly and humbly (well, of course you should do it humbly, but you know what I mean, I hope!), you will see God's blessings showering on you and your family.
Things you have been anxious about will become peaceful. Together you will make calm decisions about things that have been troubling you.
I promise.
