Over the past two weeks, I have been solo-parenting our fur babies while my wife, Karen, is helping her mother recover from surgery. In our normal rhythms, Karen always takes morning duty with our pups and cat to feed, potty, play. She does morning duty because she has to leave so early for work and because we all know I am not a morning person at all, and “grumpy Amy” is not the best version of myself. Then I handle night duty with the last potty breaks for the night, snacks to fill their bellies for a good night of sleep, and of course play time. I am more of a night owl than Karen is (imagine Grumpy Amy in the mornings turns to Grumpy Karen at night!) However, these rhythms have been thrown off these past couple of weeks as we’ve had to adjust during this season – and of course it all happens right here at the beginning of the Lenten season where we are all invited to imagine our rhythms of our daily lives and how that is informing and impacting our relationship with God, self, and others.
I did not give up anything this year for Lent. This is mainly because I was forced to add something – morning duty! While at first I found myself pretty grumpy in the mornings, it only took a few days before I started to actually enjoy those quiet, early mornings with our pets. Every morning, all three of them greeted me with energy (sometimes too much energy!), were thrilled at the thought of a new day, showed so much gratitude for their breakfast, and played like they had never played before. I realized that this added rhythm to my life was giving me space and time in my day to enjoy the sunrise (I don’t see a lot of those – ha!), to listen to the sounds of the rooster who lives two doors down,, speak to my neighbors who were out doing the early morning walks with their dogs, enjoy the songs of the birds, and actually have time to make myself a decent breakfast. I am realizing that this added time in the mornings is helping me notice things that I’ve not always noticed before.
During this Lenten season, what are you noticing in your practice of taking away something or adding something? Did a rhythm change for you – even if not by your choosing? Has something in your life changed that you didn’t anticipate? Wherever you find yourself during this Lenten season, I invite you to simply notice when something gets out of rhythm and how God is very present in every situation. It might just be in the most unexpected times.
You are loved!
-Pastor Amy
