Time

The Days of Our Lives

Jeanna G1 Comment

I read today that John Aniston recently passed away. He played Victor Kiriakis on NBC’s Days of Our Lives for a very long time. This news flashed memories from childhood across my mental screen. My grandma started watching the show when it first aired back in 1965. She was a housewife, and everyday she took an hour off from the cooking and cleaning and child-rearing to enjoy her program. When I was in Kindergarten, my mom ran a daycare out of our house. I attended the morning program at school, so I was getting home as she was putting all of her charges down for a nap. This was also right on time to lie on the couch with my mom while she watched the same soap opera.

Both my grandma and mom worked their tails off, and they deserved much more than an hour-long break everyday. I work a full-time job outside of the home, so I don’t get to follow in my matriarch’s footsteps and watch tv daily from 1-2pm, but I deserve a break, nonetheless.

I heard a devotion the other day that really struck a chord with me. It was about the sacredness of the mundane (I apologize I do not know the title or author of the devotion). We can practice this by slowing down, and in those moments we have an opportunity to “discover a spark of joy,” even in activities that we do as routine or out of necessity, and not necessarily out of spontaneity or want.

Every day I’m rushing around and thinking about what’s next, instead of being present. My grandma and mom were wise women to know they needed to stop and take a break every day, for themselves. Sometimes we need to escape in order to be more present. And the author of the devotion is right about slowing down, because we all know that, “Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives.”

Time Warp

Jeanna G1 Comment

I traveled back to my childhood hometown last month. My brother rolled his eyes at me every time I pointed out things that were still the same. “Yeah, nothing ever changes around here,” he said. Visiting home was like entering a time warp; time seemed to have been suspended. Some people might think that’s strange, considering how much changes on a daily basis in our fast-paced world. And some people might even be disappointed by the lack of change. I, however, find comfort in the fact that things haven’t changed much at all in the 25 years I’ve been gone. The library, grocery and hardware stores, park, church, and bagel shop, streets, landscapes, homes, and apple orchard…all still the same.

Pilgrim Covenant, my childhood church

I consider my childhood home to be a large part of my foundation. So if it were to describe me, what would it say? That I’m steadfast and reliable? Old-fashioned? Maybe I’m just stubborn. Either way, in a world that oftentimes feels unpredictable and restless, surrounding myself with the familiar can be a remedy.

Waste Not, Want Not

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I’ve been pretty busy the last couple of months. Now that I’ve been vaccinated, and the world, for a while there, seemed to open back up, I’ve been saying “yes” to just about everything. Weekend beach trip? Aloha! Stomp grapes at a vineyard? Cheers! Bachelorette party back at my university? Obviously! Outdoor concerts? Heck yeah! Friend’s wedding? Certainly! Trip to the mountains, art show, birthday parties…. I’m there, there, and there! Why not?!

It’s been a blast! And all of this yes-saying reminds me of my youth. I was up for anything! I played sports every day, went to parties on the weekends, ran around town with my friends doing this, that, and the third, all while fitting in schoolwork, extracurriculars, and part-time jobs. Of course my body recuperated a lot faster back then, and I could sleep in until noon on a Saturday if I wanted, but despite the changes, my tiredness is still outmatched by my youthfulness . It’s not so much a case of the FOMOs, but more a case of the YOLOs that inspires me to keep going.

My friend rolls her eyes at me often as she says I have more time in my day than she does. I laugh, but we both know it’s not how much time we’re given, but what we choose to do with it that truly matters. I don’t think she actually wants to do all of the things I do, but I do know she enjoys spending her time giving me a hard time. And, to be honest, I don’t want to do everything I do either, but some of those things are a means to an end, so if I hurry up and do it, I won’t have to do it anymore!

In high school I was given the Briarwood College Book Award for showing promise in the field of business. I was caught off guard, as I didn’t know it was an award, and I certainly wasn’t expecting to be the recipient. I was nominated for the award by my keyboarding teacher. Thinking back, I realize he probably noticed that, while my classmates were chatting, I would fly through my typing assignments and then quickly move on to complete work for other classes, or use the leftover time to plan events for Student Council. I was, and still am, always on the go. Just Do It. Get ‘er done. Shit or get off the pot. East Coast state of mind… move or get run over!

The proverbial saying, “Waste Not, Want Not,” has become one of my most repeated mantras for life. This way of living enables me to do more without needing more. I don’t want to waste time, so I seek out short cuts. I don’t want to waste my breath, so I seek out amiable relationships. I don’t want to waste my talents, so I spend time doing what I love. I don’t like wasting materials, so I’ve become more creative, resourceful, and strategic in my approaches. I’ve become a better cook because I don’t like wasting food, so I’ll get inventive with those three random leftovers sitting in my fridge.

I know, it can be exhausting just reading about it all, but don’t get me wrong, I love a good tv series binge-fest on my couch with the only movement being that of my wine glass to my mouth. Whether I’m sitting in silence, or racing from one event to the next, if I’m enjoying what I’m doing or working towards, then I’m wasting nothing.