A Calm in the Storm
By Jane DeLaney
Waiting for that call, dreading the worst, "I'm sorry, you didn't make the team", was in the pit of our stomachs as we approached the dinner hour last night. Knowing my daughter had just finished try-outs for Varsity cheerleading after months of preparing had us all on pins and needles. We held off dinner for a while to wait on her, then went ahead around the table and did what we normally do, bringing calm and something predictable in the face of another one of life's uncertainties.
Even though my husband's nerves kill his appetite, the rest of us spared no time at all to graze and chatter about this and that. After all, that's what you do when you're nervous about something, you chatter and distract. How perfect, a place to be together, around a table, where chatting can happen, and better yet, with good food right there for the taking - rather, for the distracting. And yes, I have no problem with that - using something that should normally be in our day - a good meal - for distraction - killing two birds with one stone.
What's the alternative - everyone scatter, graze on your own, and go find an electronic fix! Instead, we rally, convene, and strengthen the team by repeating over and over a capsule of time, spent together, face-to-face over a warm meal. On this night, this thing we call dinner, coincided with an hour of inner turmoil, only to soothe and bring gratefulness for what we do have.
So often that happens, when I finally plop myself down, look across the table, seeing the precious faces of my family, look down at the warm food, how can I not feel grateful? And what other time in my day does that kind of moment happen? Certainly not in the laundry room when I'm on my fifth load and five more to go. Nor is it when I'm unloading ten bags of groceries before racing off to carpool. If there were no regular time when I stopped in my day to tangibly bring together what God has given me, then I honestly don't know if it would happen at much at all. I can think about it and pray about it in my day, but nothing replaces the profound sense of gratitude when I literally eat of His goodness and see eye to eye the richest blessings I own on earth.
To me, dinnertime is my daily megaphone from God - in the face of what I do not have, reminding me of all that I do have. There is no question that we all suffer loss, we ache with voids in our lives, hurt for our children, and struggle through the fallen nature of this world we are in. If we are not careful this will become our reality and we will forget the greater reality that we have been given so much. We need to love what we have - holding on to it dearly, gratefully, reminding ourselves over and over and over again that God is good.
So even on a day with stress and turmoil, we had dinner anyway. Did we get the phone call - did she make it? We did, but either way, we know God is good, we are blessed and we as a family are once again strengthened and nourished to face the next day.
Copyright 2005. Jane DeLaney. All rights reserved.
By Jane DeLaney
Waiting for that call, dreading the worst, "I'm sorry, you didn't make the team", was in the pit of our stomachs as we approached the dinner hour last night. Knowing my daughter had just finished try-outs for Varsity cheerleading after months of preparing had us all on pins and needles. We held off dinner for a while to wait on her, then went ahead around the table and did what we normally do, bringing calm and something predictable in the face of another one of life's uncertainties.
Even though my husband's nerves kill his appetite, the rest of us spared no time at all to graze and chatter about this and that. After all, that's what you do when you're nervous about something, you chatter and distract. How perfect, a place to be together, around a table, where chatting can happen, and better yet, with good food right there for the taking - rather, for the distracting. And yes, I have no problem with that - using something that should normally be in our day - a good meal - for distraction - killing two birds with one stone.
What's the alternative - everyone scatter, graze on your own, and go find an electronic fix! Instead, we rally, convene, and strengthen the team by repeating over and over a capsule of time, spent together, face-to-face over a warm meal. On this night, this thing we call dinner, coincided with an hour of inner turmoil, only to soothe and bring gratefulness for what we do have.
So often that happens, when I finally plop myself down, look across the table, seeing the precious faces of my family, look down at the warm food, how can I not feel grateful? And what other time in my day does that kind of moment happen? Certainly not in the laundry room when I'm on my fifth load and five more to go. Nor is it when I'm unloading ten bags of groceries before racing off to carpool. If there were no regular time when I stopped in my day to tangibly bring together what God has given me, then I honestly don't know if it would happen at much at all. I can think about it and pray about it in my day, but nothing replaces the profound sense of gratitude when I literally eat of His goodness and see eye to eye the richest blessings I own on earth.
To me, dinnertime is my daily megaphone from God - in the face of what I do not have, reminding me of all that I do have. There is no question that we all suffer loss, we ache with voids in our lives, hurt for our children, and struggle through the fallen nature of this world we are in. If we are not careful this will become our reality and we will forget the greater reality that we have been given so much. We need to love what we have - holding on to it dearly, gratefully, reminding ourselves over and over and over again that God is good.
So even on a day with stress and turmoil, we had dinner anyway. Did we get the phone call - did she make it? We did, but either way, we know God is good, we are blessed and we as a family are once again strengthened and nourished to face the next day.
Copyright 2005. Jane DeLaney. All rights reserved.