A busy Sabbath

I have to admit it. Last night as I was going to bed, I told Bill, "I'm going to need a rest from my Sabbath tomorrow." Unfortunately for me, it's a work day and that's not happening. Yesterday was hectic.

We started the day at Sunday School at 10, followed by our worship service at 11. Two of our daughters, one son-in-law, the grandbabies and Bill and I left church and drove over to Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, one of my husband's favorite places on earth, where we met another daughter and her boyfriend for lunch. We were gathering to celebrate Bill's birthday and Easter, since we can't get together for either. After an afternoon spent amidst the beauty of Phipps, we headed back to our house where we were joined by another son-in-law who just got off work. And thus the chaos began, with cooking and setting the table and little ones running around playing and an egg hunt and presents and cards and just a little bit of craziness. I've been really stressed lately, and I have to admit, all of this rattled my nerves a bit. Before we finally sat down to dinner (which the kids bought and prepared), I popped some Hyland's Calm pills and started to relax. You know you're dealing with a bunch of people who have way too much stress in their lives, when you have to pass the homeopathic Calm pills around the table. Granted, not everyone took one, but still ...

 
Life is like that sometimes. Stressful. Crazy. Chaotic.

Bill and I are facing some huge changes ahead, including his retirement in one month. It's a scary time for me, on many fronts, and I'm not dealing with it too well. That's why I'm coming to you, my caring, supportive GG community, and humbly asking for prayer.

If ever I needed a Sabbath rest, it was yesterday. But instead of what I thought I needed, I had a houseful of love, and maybe that's what I needed most of all. 

For those of you who are newer to the community, you might not know that Bill is not Bethany and Jessica's biological father. Neither is he Laura or Lincoln's biological grandfather. But what he is is Dad and Pap Pap and you never saw kids and grandkids love a man so much. That was my reminder that God is in control. When my first husband died, I didn't know how I was going to go on. I didn't know how I was going to make it as a single mom. But then Bill came along. I could not have asked for anything or anyone better. My little girls crawled into his lap and into his heart and that was that. 

Blood ties? Yeah, they mean something. But if you've ever seen my husband with our girls or our grandchildren, you'd see that blood pales in comparison to true love. 

Yesterday's Sabbath -- busy, chaotic, noisy, and full of love. How blessed are we?

Sharing my Sabbath experience with you,

Hana