The OR principle aka Soapbox Saturday.

Wow it is Saturday morning. This week just seriously flew by.

Wow it is the July 4th holiday weekend. This year has just flown by.

I think there is some kind of strange connection with getting older and how fast time seems to move.

Or maybe it isn't age at all maybe it is the busyness that we fill our lives with now. With the computers, cell phones, ipods, ipads, and televisions. With the hobbies and activities that we have to constantly be participating in. We barely have time to breath so is it any wonder at the end of each day we wonder where the day went?  (Can you tell that I just climbed up on my soapbox)

We run all week just waiting for the weekend. Then we rush all weekend trying to fit in all the stuff we missed all week that the weekend is gone before we know it. So what do we do?

We can keep running and rushing and letting time fly by pretending that we aren't really missing anything. Mom at one soccer game, Dad at another soccer game, while Grandma makes the piano recital counts as family time doesn't it?  Running through the drive through to grab a bite cause they were all sold out of hot dogs at the concession stand counts as family dinner doesn't it? We all ate in the car at the same time.  Working insane hours each week to pay for things we "need" is the way to show our families that we love them and the world that we are are successful isn't it. 

Or we can choose to simplify things. We can choose to slow down. We can choose to have family dinners at least a few times a week. We can spend time with those who matter most because some day they will be gone. We can live in a smaller house, drive an older car, buy less junk and work less hours. We could decide cleaning the house doesn't matter as much as having fun (okay you know I threw that one in there just for me because I REALLY had rather have fun and hate to clean LOL).

I have been reading WEIRD: Because Normal Isn't Working by Craig Groeschel and he says we all need to institute the "or principle".  You can play soccer OR take piano lessons. We can work over time to pay for a new car OR have more time with our family. I can be on that committee at church OR I can help in the nursery. I can take that job that pays more money OR I can be home in time for the kids to get off the bus.  I can go to book club OR I can go to the ladies bible study. It is all about choices whether we see it that way or not. For everything we choose to do we don't have time for something else.

I am not saying I think everyone needs to pull their kids out of all their activities, stop doing all the things you love, and start staying home ALL the time.What I am saying is that in this constant busy run here run there way we are living we are losing something.  We are losing time with our spouses, time with our children, time with our parents, time with our brothers and sisters and aunts and uncles. We are losing time with our friends, time with ourselves, and most importantly time with our God.  It isn't that any of these things we are doing are bad (at least not the things I am talking about) but too much of a good thing is still too much.

I know it is what everyone is doing. I know it feels like our kids would be missing out. I know it means we might have to give up our multitasking, soccer mom, ballet mom. coaching mom, room mom, team mom, car pool mom, supermom title. But it might be better to be the plain old has time to talk, play games, one on one time with the kids, bake cookies kinda mom.  It would probably mean you would never keep up with the Jones'. Funny how no matter how much we deny it our identity is pretty tied up with the Jones' and whether or not we are "keeping up".

I know it would be weird but as Craig Groeschel says in his book... go ahead and be weird cause normal isn't working.

Shell