Energy
Isabella is the busiest 7 month old I've ever seen. Granted, I haven't been around a whole lot, but this kid (my daughter nonetheless) never stops! She is definitely a Hong Kong baby. I wonder where all that energy comes from. Is baby food really that energizing? Maybe it's the rice oatmeal, or maybe that other stuff that she loves so much. Who knows?
Tonight we were in a taxi on the way home from doing some post Christmas shopping and Isabella was all over the place. She hadn't had a nap in 4 hours yet was grinning ear to ear and moving faster than any little kid should be able to move. Then I looked outside. Today was the first day back to normalcy for most employees after some time off for Christmas and the New Year and people weren't exactly takin' it easy. Every time I walk through a business or shopping area I'm amazed and perplexed by the seemingly universal perception that we are all in a hurry. Even my daughter has the bug. When she wants something, she goes full speed.
Okay, so there's nothing wrong with a 7 month old having some energy, in fact it's down right cute. I think there is a much bigger problem brewing all around us.
Suicide rates are up, stress levels are through the roof and studies are coming out all the time of students struggling in school because they can't seem to focus and slow down. I have to question the point of this endless quest to do more. What makes us feel that we have to rush everything?
This is not an original thought to me, but it's one that continues to come up here the big city. It happens everywhere. I know the Psalms tell us to "Be still and know...", intimating that it's in the moments of stillness where we can draw nearest to God. I agree wholeheartedly with this truth but find a society around me making it more and more difficult to find stillness.
I could lament daily about this having moved from Minnesota to a place where grass is at a premium. Then I come home to my daughter and I watch her. Yeah, she's busy, always busy. Yep, she can't sit still for long. And yes, she keeps mommy on her toes. Past all that is a little girl that finds joy in the littlest things. If she sees something worth devoting her attention to, she stops, investigates, and focuses. All that energy is contained, focused and contained on that tissue or toy.
I may never find the place in Hong Kong that takes me back to the stillness of the Great Smoky Mountains. The question on my mind is, why do I need the mountains to find stillness? I wrote earlier that I am learning to find stillness in new ways. That's a daily struggle, but I think the key is in finding the courage to stop and just focus on my Lord.
Outside of an amazing change in culture, life will always be frantic here. I hope I've made peace with that. I also hope that I have the energy to be still. Isabella is a great teacher, isn't she?
Tonight we were in a taxi on the way home from doing some post Christmas shopping and Isabella was all over the place. She hadn't had a nap in 4 hours yet was grinning ear to ear and moving faster than any little kid should be able to move. Then I looked outside. Today was the first day back to normalcy for most employees after some time off for Christmas and the New Year and people weren't exactly takin' it easy. Every time I walk through a business or shopping area I'm amazed and perplexed by the seemingly universal perception that we are all in a hurry. Even my daughter has the bug. When she wants something, she goes full speed.
Okay, so there's nothing wrong with a 7 month old having some energy, in fact it's down right cute. I think there is a much bigger problem brewing all around us.
Suicide rates are up, stress levels are through the roof and studies are coming out all the time of students struggling in school because they can't seem to focus and slow down. I have to question the point of this endless quest to do more. What makes us feel that we have to rush everything? This is not an original thought to me, but it's one that continues to come up here the big city. It happens everywhere. I know the Psalms tell us to "Be still and know...", intimating that it's in the moments of stillness where we can draw nearest to God. I agree wholeheartedly with this truth but find a society around me making it more and more difficult to find stillness.
I could lament daily about this having moved from Minnesota to a place where grass is at a premium. Then I come home to my daughter and I watch her. Yeah, she's busy, always busy. Yep, she can't sit still for long. And yes, she keeps mommy on her toes. Past all that is a little girl that finds joy in the littlest things. If she sees something worth devoting her attention to, she stops, investigates, and focuses. All that energy is contained, focused and contained on that tissue or toy.
I may never find the place in Hong Kong that takes me back to the stillness of the Great Smoky Mountains. The question on my mind is, why do I need the mountains to find stillness? I wrote earlier that I am learning to find stillness in new ways. That's a daily struggle, but I think the key is in finding the courage to stop and just focus on my Lord.
Outside of an amazing change in culture, life will always be frantic here. I hope I've made peace with that. I also hope that I have the energy to be still. Isabella is a great teacher, isn't she?
posted by Mike at 9:48 PM
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