Hurricane Isaac

I told Aaron he was in charge of naming this baby.  I've taken more than my share of turns, and I was running out of ideas.  For my birthday present, he told me the name he was thinking of.  It was Isaac.  Isaac means "He will laugh" I thought it was appropriate--when I told Aaron there was a baby coming, he didn't believe me because I was laughing.  I couldn't help it.  It took him several hours to even consider that I was serious.  And I don't think he really believed me until a month later.  

And all along, sometimes I would just laugh that we were actually bringing another baby into the world.  Sometimes I laughed because the boys were doing something funny.  And sometimes I laughed because they were so awful, I couldn't imagine adding another one to the equation.  

Then when we found out he was a HE we laughed again.  Another boy!! Wow, how rare is that?  Someone must think we know what we're doing!   Six boys?!! Wow.  More laughter.  

Right before the baby came, we were talking about the name "Isaac", and  then a hurricane hit Louisiana.  And guess what they named it?  Yep.  Isaac.  Not much to laugh at when a hurricane hits, but I thought about our own baby, and how he was coming during our own hurricane.  

This past year has been the fastest ever.  My mom continually tells me that life speeds up every year (she's full of tidbits of knowledge like that), but this year has surpassed them all.  I feel like the whole year shot by at warp speed.  Instead of the average increase in speed (like the increase in insurance premiums) of 10%, somehow we were propelled to maximum in a matter of months.

And I'm tired.

And I'm wondering when and how I hit the "warp speed" button, and how do I turn it off?

I thought when the baby got here, surely it would slow down, but however impossible it seemed, things sped up.  My brother and his family moved in,  the basement construction continued at long night hours, Aaron left town for work, soccer games kept going, piano lessons, church activities, the endless hungry mouths, piles of laundry, sticky floors. . . there was no end in sight.

Then it was conference weekend.  And I got to take a breath.  When they planned to have general conference every 6 months, someone knew what they were doing.  Just when I thought my hurricane would surely pick me up and drop me off a cliff, a gentle breeze came over the mountain, and gently set us down.

This is what it sounded like:

Isn’t it true that we often get so busy? And, sad to say, we even wear our busyness as a badge of honor, as though being busy, by itself, was an accomplishment or sign of a superior life.

Is it?

I think of our Lord and Exemplar, Jesus Christ, and His short life among the people of Galilee and Jerusalem. I have tried to imagine Him bustling between meetings or multitasking to get a list of urgent things accomplished.

I can’t see it.

Instead I see the compassionate and caring Son of God purposefully living each day. When He interacted with those around Him, they felt important and loved. He knew the infinite value of the people He met. He blessed them, ministered to them. He lifted them up, healed them. He gave them the precious gift of His time.

I think of all the things I spend my time on, and I've determined that this hurricane around me is mostly self created.  Somehow, I have to be the one to slow it all down.  

Maybe I'll sit here and snuggle this new little bundle some more.  And watch him laugh.