Being forced to take a break

As y'all know, I love the Girl Talk blog. I think the wisdom that Carolyn Mahaney and her daughters have to offer is convicting, refreshing and funny. For Christmas, I bought myself one of their books called Shopping for Time. I think I have mentioned it before on here. This book is a great find: biblical, anecdotal, practical, and barely 100 pages - perfect for those of us with no time!

Anyway, the reason I bring up this book again is that there is a chapter in there about taking a mothering/wifing break to reflect, plan, prioritze and relax. This break is supposed to be once a year, I think, and when I read that chapter, I thought to myself, "There is no way I could ever do that! I can't be away from my family when I don't have to be!"

Haha. Thank you, Lord.

Today, I am writing from Williamsburg. Yes, Williamsburg. I came to a conference here with a colleague of mine and four great students from our school. I am not actually attending the conference; really, I'm just a chaperone and another adult on the trip. So I am being forced to take a break. To reflect, plan, prioritize and relax. And grade research papers.

So what have I learned so far? Here is a brief summary:

1. Cable TV is not as good as I sometimes remember it. And I don't have TLC, which makes me sad.


2. The people in the conference that I am attending (I'm eating meals with my peeps here) are in a totally different subculture of this society than me, that I've never really seen or experienced. Also in a totally different subculture is the competitive cheerleading squad sharing a hotel with us. All I can say is, wow, I never knew that people like this existed in real life.


3. I can no longer underestimate the capacity of grading I can get done when stuck in a single room with a very comfy bed and hours of crime dramas at my disposal.


4. I miss my family. I mean of course I do.

So honestly, I haven't made much of a spiritual journey so far this weekend. I didn't want to waste the time, so I cranked out a class of research papers yesterday, and I feel good about that. But I know that I should do some actual prayer, reading and reflection. And I will. And I wanted you to know. Please pray for me for the next 24 hours: not because I'm lonely, but that God would use this forced break (that He has obviously ordained) for His purpose and His glory. Thanks, y'all. :)

P.S. Oh, and yes, Dad and Adam, I will make sure that I visit Colonial Williamsburg while I'm here - I'll go this afternoon. :)