dailydatewithgod

For some reason, there is this idea that to have time for leisure we need to have everything else done.  Perhaps it is a stay over from childhood where you did not get to go play until your chores were done or eat dessert until you had your vegetables.  In principle the idea is sound.  Discipline and taking care of the staples allows time to saunter. Yet we can get so caught up in the doing mode of life that we think we are human doings instead of human beings.  When we learn to let go of the mind’s chatter or at least not take it so seriously all the time there is room for another perspective.  There are of course times when doing and getting done are most important.  I live my life effectively because I have structure and discipline.  Yet not every environment or circumstance needs us to march through.  Some elements of life call upon us to saunter. Getting into the rhythm of our hearts, noticing the pattern of our breath when we enter an experience is one way of detecting if it march time or saunter time, or even running time.   Having a leisure approach to something does not imply laziness or earned relaxation.  It is something we can incorporate amidst the hustle and bustle.  When we remember to saunter we can notice the panoramic view.  When we saunter for a few moments we can look people in the eyes. When we saunter we allow ourselves to receive all the gifts the moment has to offer.  There is a reason for an exhale following an inhale.  Unless we take the moment to let go we will not have the energy to keep moving.  God invites us to find the moments where a saunter is exactly what is needed to be most fully ourselves at the moment we are in.