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“I think maybe we’ve accidentally taught the kids that being exhausted is a bad thing…”
I said those exact words to my wife Elena as we were turning in for the evening. This Summer is pretty busy for our family. Not only does LifeSongs have a lot of fun events going on (skating, bowling, concerts and more), but my kids (ages 9 and 5) are going to a creative arts camp, VBS and Kaylee (my eldest) is going to her first sleep away church camp. Some families thrive by having a million things going on. Sports, dance, church, dinners, rinse and repeat! My family likes routine and peace and quiet. And by “my family” I mean, mostly me.
By nature, I’m pretty introverted – needing equal times of retreat to counteract social activities. It’s not that I don’t love fun events and being with people – it just takes a lot out of me. And there is this moment in the evening (probably around 6:45 PM) where a choice is made to either put on tennis shoes or put on pajamas. Usually the PJ’s win. If my family is jumping from one thing to the next for an extended period of time, we all get pretty cranky. Weekday afternoons we have what we call “room time” where we can all retreat to our separate corners and have some quiet me-time for an hour or two. But this Summer it is go, go, GO!
And that is OK. Being busy isn’t necessarily bad. It is just a season. I want my kids to experience all of these things – even if that means they will be exhausted for a month afterwards. Hard work makes life more full. The Bible frowns on laziness, praises diligent work and also highlights the importance of peace. There’s that “work/life balance” that so many young adults say is the number one thing they look for in a job.
Do you love attacking life 100 miles per hour? Or are you more like me where that looks good on paper until you show up and immediately wish you were home on your couch?