The Sabbath Experiment -- week 25



Photo courtesy of Vera Kratochvil


What a fantastic weekend! I am starting the work week off feeling refreshed and content...although the panic of too much to do is starting to creep up and is threatening to rob me of these sweet emotions!

My husband and I actually went out to sing Karaoke on Friday night. It used to be a regular activity of ours, but we haven't done this since September, so it was a nice treat. I even got a standing ovation for my rendition of "Don't Cry for Me Argentina," and Bill got some rousing hoots and applause for "Unchained Melody." It was a fun night and a nice crowd. Unfortunately, when we went out to my car, we discovered someone had tried to break in and the alarm, which must have been going off for a long time, wore the battery done. Nothing like waiting for roadside assistance at 2 a.m.!

After a day of cleaning on Saturday, we participated in Earth Hour in the evening. We set up a card table in front of the fireplace and dined by candlelight. All the electric items in our home were turned off and/or unplugged, with the exception of the refrigerator and the furnace (which we turned way down). While Earth Hour was only from 8:30-9:30, we didn't end up turning our lights back on until 11:50. After dinner, we played Bananagrams. The candles lit the table enough to be able to see the tiles. At 10:00, we did turn on the television and watched a movie, but that was the only electricity we used.

Green Grandpa suggested we do this weekly. I countered with the idea to make it a monthly thing and would like to challenge all of you in the GG community to join us in one hour electricity shutdown on the last Friday of every month. While Earth Hour was a specific designated hour worldwide, I understand special issues that can arise with putting children to bed, etc., so my proposal is to choose an hour between 6 and 11 p.m. Bill and I will be doing this faithfully and I encourage you to pledge to join us. Of course, circumstances might interfer at times, but I ask you to make a concerted effort. Let me know your thoughts on this.

On Sunday, I was blessed to be able to join in worship with my church family again. After missing the last two weeks, it was a special treat. And, of course, we had our weekly family lunch after church...one of the highlights of every week. Since it was the last Sunday of the month, it was Dominoes night with "Fred" and "Joyce." We shared a meal with them and then got competitive! I actually won this time. We also told Fred about the research regarding breast milk as a cure for cancer. After I blogged about Fred's cancer, one of the members of the GG community sent me a message and told me to look into this. From what I read, the news is promising on this front. Why haven't we heard more about it? Well, for one thing, there hasn't been a lot of research because ... pharmaceutical companies have nothing to gain. Sound cynical? Yeah. I am.

So today, Fred is researching this option. Perhaps this is exactly what we've been praying for.

The Sabbath Experiment continues to bless my life. I hope my journey is inspiring you toward a journey of your own.

Avoiding work on the Sabbath,

Hana