Note: This week, I will be sharing stories of my emotional journey. I think we often misunderstand or neglect emotional health. God has been working on this in my life. All of these are intended to tell what happened to me, not to tell you what to do. They are anecdotes NOT advice. You have your own journey and have to do your own research. Feel free to share your stories in the comments or in an email. I would love to read them!
My phone beeps, and I check the text message coming through. I read “On my way.” And I smile. Then, I go put the coffee on. It’s become our little ritual. Almost every day, we grab that half hour between his work day and mine and hold it for our own while holding our cups of coffee.
We don’t usually have deep heart-to-heart talks during our coffee chats. Sometimes we don’t even chat much. It’s enough to just be together. We’ve both been guilty of working too hard and too long and too far away from each other.
When all is said and done, it is the relationships that matter. That is why I have my first cup of coffee for the day with Jesus. He is truly my best Friend, and I cherish my morning time with Him.
And those four not-so-little people in my home? It’s easy to think we’re building a relationship while I’m building a spreadsheet upstairs and they’re building Legos downstairs. Home schooling doesn’t always guarantee learning the deepest lessons of life.
So, I pencil into my calendar time to just play. Or just talk. Or to go on a mom and kid date. These are the things from which relationships are made.
We laugh around the tearoom table every December. My mom, because it’s her birthday. And my sister and our baby girls, mine with the baby face long gone and hers fading fast. Our sister-in-love joins us, and we sip tea and joke about how glad we are that our men and active boys stay at home so we can enjoy our feminine afternoon.
Talks and play dates with friends, holiday meals with family, gathering after church with those family members. These are the times I will look back and see marking my life.
Relationship. It’s what He made us to crave and the gift He gave us, beginning with Himself.