And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts.
Acts 2:46
Fall is always a time of year when I feel the desire to slow down, make my home as cozy as I can, and rest. Of course that’s not to say that this is what occurs every fall- but in my mind I picture this as fall.
I do this with my life too; picturing the daily practices and rhythms that I wish was part of my everyday life, but that never come to fruition.
Years ago, before covid, before the talk of all of the corruption of all of the officials, and before war gained a national stage between Ukraine and Russia my husband and I had the opportunity to go on a mission trip to Ukraine with our church.
Preparing to leave for our trip I braced myself for what I might encounter there. This was my first mission’s trip and I had so many people tell me about how it was going to change my life, turn my world upside down, and that I would encounter a way of life so different from my own, that I would be a totally changed person when I came back- 10 days later.
Well the trip was an experience that I am so grateful I got to do! The people were warm and welcoming, the children wormed their way into our hearts, and I got to experience the world outside of my normal sphere. But no, my world wasn’t turned upside down. I didn’t come back and feel the call to go into mission work full time. But I noticed a few things about their way of life.
Someone asked me upon my return what stood out to me most about the differences in our cultures- they were probably expecting an answer about poverty, lack of healthcare, or how their schools are still using computers I haven’t seen since kindergarten. Those weren’t what stood out to me though. What impacted me most about their culture?
They didn’t rush all the time.
We would have big meals, under a tent in the parsonage’s front yard. The first day us Americans rushed though our meals, and everyone else, (who were Ukrainian) kinda looked at us side-eyed and asked what our rush was- VBS didn’t start for another hour…
We spent a day in Kiev, walking around and touring the city. Part way through the day we needed food. Once again us Americans were busy rushing through our meal while the Ukrainian members of our group were laughing and enjoying the meal.
They were savoring the experience while we all rushed right through our meal.
I began to realize that this wasn’t just a mealtime thing. The way they approached life was far more graceful than the frenetic pace at which we usually attack life. In fact how many times have you heard that phrase “plan of attack for the day” or “how are we going to tackle today”? Why do we feel that days are something that needs tackling or attacking? Probably because we shoe horn so much into our days that only by running at it in attack mode do we think we could possibly accomplish everything that we think we need to in a given day. So therefore we don’t rest, we don’t relax, and we fail to savor this one life that we have been given.
How about you? How do you approach your days? Are you mealtimes something to be rushed through before you run out of the house again or do you savor good food with people you love?
This fall I hope you make a little time to slow down, and share a simple, slow meal with people you are about. I hope you get a few moments to slow down and do the things that seem like fall to you. I hope you take the opportunity to slow down and savor not just this season, but also this life.
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