WHAT??? Here it is the end of October …just how did that happen? Do you remember when you were a kid and it seemed on Monday morning that the week loomed in front of you and that it would take an eternity for the days to pass until it was the weekend again? Now it seem time is a rapidly vanishing commodity. While a minute might seem like a long time if you are waiting on hold, the days evaporate and the weeks fly by. It always seems to me these days that there is just not enough time. At the end of each day I look around my office and wonder what I actually accomplished in that day as the piles of papers that need sorting and the books that need reading remain stacked on my desk.
Here it is Saturday, that last Saturday of the month, only eight more Saturdays before the end of the year. Time flies, indeed! And yet, each moment is packed with so much that to look back allows opportunity to treasure conversations, feel the warmth of a hug, savour a delicious meal, reread an email, breathe deeply, sleep a bit longer, walk a bit further, or listen a bit longer.
Recently a friend gave me a little pocketbook of daily reflections. It is called “Whispers of Encouragement – Inspiration for Every Day”. This morning as I faced a busy Saturday I needed a little encouragement in just figuring out how to get everything done and still have a bit of a “weekend”! I opened the book to this quote by the late Ruth Bell Graham. “It may be one more request than we think we can fulfill, one more responsibility than we think we can manage…interruptions never distracted Jesus. He accepted them as opportunities of a richer service.”
Ah, there is that word popping up again, service. Yes, if we totally focused on our self we would have lots of time to do the things we need to do, but the very things that prevent us from marking things off a “To Do” list is the interruptions. Most often the interruptions lead to offering a listening ear, a helping hand, a shoulder to cry on, an opportunity for service.
So, take the time, enjoy the moment, seize the opportunity. It only takes a minute to make a difference.
