The Gift of a Day in Bed

I spent the day in bed today because my body was exhausted. The last few weeks have strung together an amazing fullness of life, to include working on a big project, caring for my son's broken nose, and mentoring my teen through a difficult time. Under normal circumstances, my routine acts as the glue that holds me together. Daily I strive to pray well, eat well, rest well, take my vitamins, the whole routine. My routine is a form of discipline and I do see it as my responsibility to make sure that I don't get too depleted, that I protect my time, and that I care for myself in the midst of family life. Most of the time, staying on top of my care daily is enough. Most of the time.

After several weeks of unusual and purposeful action on my part, well fueled by the Holy Spirit (Thank You!), my body was bound to meet it's natural point of depletion. I was flying through this time with a physical energy that was not my norm, and I knew it. When days turned into weeks and I was still going strong, I thought I got away with something! Then last night, my husband returned from being out of town, took the children to their practices, and left me alone at home. Oh, how rare it is for me to be home alone! My mind naturally went to my ever-growing to-do list and the hole I felt dug into from the past wild weeks. My body, however, had different plans. I rested on the couch and watched the World Series until my family returned then I went to bed. Very unusual.

Today I was blessed with a rare day of no medical appointments, no outside lessons, no outside classes, no outside commitments. My normal Friday routine is filled with home-based work and the to-do list. I bucked my own system and stayed in bed. My children assured me that they would hold down the fort, and they did. They even went above and beyond the call of duty by making me breakfast in bed (scrambled eggs, home-made sausage, toast, and honey crisp apple slices,) lunch in bed (chicken salad with capers and sun-dried tomatoes sandwich and orange slices,) and hauling drinking water to me like I was a wilted plant. They kept the house quiet while I napped, twice. I prayed and read and the day flew by like a luscious dream.

By five o'clock, I felt so much better. I felt like my body was finally "caught up" with my positive thoughts and feelings. I felt so good that the children and I made a nice dinner for my husband, enjoyed it with him, then sent HIM to bed. I folded clothes while watching a movie with the children and now I'm off for a walk. I'm optimistic that this day was well spent, not only in energy gained, but in problems avoided. Tomorrow will be here soon and I'll need to get back to my routine. I'll keep this gift of a day in bed in mind for the future, and I'll pray that my mothering friends and family will find themselves with the opportunity to accept the gift as well.