Disruption to plans is not always a welcomed guest. We find comfort in familiar places. Routines provide opportunities to remember our story: individual and collective. They help inform identity as we move about this side of Heaven. However, 2020 has thrust us toward recognizing that routines and expectations may change. What then?
Several years ago, my husband and I had to make a “punch-in-the-gut” decision: to cancel our family’s reservation for family camp. Unexpected financial hardship marked the year. After waiting until the last minute, we realized that we could not afford our annual vacation to our beloved refuge at our denominational church camp. As we broke the news to our kids, lament ensued. We valued that time every August as an opportunity to be restored in body and soul. Our time spent with each other and the sacred community of staff and friends was such a blessing. It would be missed.
But we recognized that the week could become an opportunity for something new. Plans for a staycation began. Living near Chicago, my husband and I thought about all the places that we wanted to visit but never had. Sometimes when you are a local, you take them for granted. Each day’s destination surprised our kids. I will never forget the excitement of my older two as we stood in front of a fun restaurant that they had heard about but never visited. The week offered new adventures, unexpected opportunities, and a reminder that “cancel” can yield to “new.”
What does the rest of the year entail? Will our calendar events reach fruition as expected? Questions remain. We may encounter disappointment. It’s OK to lament. But let us remember that blessings can unfold in different ways.
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I’m trying hard to focus on what this year has brought me rather than what I’ve lost but its not easy is it xx
Not always. Some things are really hard to let go and we can lament the loss. Thankfully, God is always redeeming so we can find hope in that truth.
Love this post. What a great idea you and your hubby came up with to turn the lemons into delicious lemonade.
Your FMF neighbor, #36
It was a great week! Thanks for visiting!
As someone that also had to cancel a holiday due to hardship a few years ago I totally relate to this. Like you it turned into one of our best. God is good. Love this post it is so open and honest. God bless visiting from fmf #4
Thanks for visiting!
There were times when I would feel
that I’d been put to pasture,
and when I asked God, “What’s the deal?”,
His first reponse was laughter.
“Son, you kept your life so full,
and so blinding fast,
I had cancer give your reins a pull
to slow you down at last
so you could learn My ministry
the way you really needed to,
but the key to learning’s mystery
lay in becoming true
to the man that I had made,
and step from blind ambition’s shade.”
I’ll bet your life wasn’t dull but I appreciate your perspective and your talent (always) for poetry.
Such a great reminder. Cancellations can bring unexpected joys. Visiting from FMF #22
Thanks for stopping by!