Margin is such a good word for protecting the things that are ours to do while excluding all the things that steal our attention and add to our stress and hurry.
Thanks, Lauren, for reading and taking time to add your thoughts.

OH, do I EVER hear you!!
I remember when my kids were all tiny, I was talking to a friend on the phone, also a mum of very young kids, and she said, “Sometimes I just sit on the couch and watch them play.”
That was an absolute REVELATION to me. Really? You don’t fold laundry while you’re watching them play??
You don’t read a book and look up at them now and then?
I think some of us will always struggle with the need to multi-task and to measure our productivity, and so we need to be certain that our worth is based in our identity in Christ rather than in the check marks on our do-list, because sometimes, the most productive thing we can do is . . .nothing!

Thanks, Rebecca, for that thought about rest! For me, Mother’s Day weekend is going to be graduation weekend as my son finishes up his college years! So much to celebrate, and it’s going to be wonderful just to spend the time with family.

It’s an on-going battle for me, Lisa.
Now that we are grandmothers, we realize how quickly those little people change. That in itself is a great motivator to slow down and relish a few things that we may have rushed through the first time.

Oh, Nylse, I hear you! A slave and proud of it at times! I’ve been so tied to the ticking of the clock and even prideful of my productivity and efficiency, forgetting that God did not intend mothering or relationships to be happening on a schedule!
Thanks for raising your hand today and saying, “Me too!” It’s so much easier to share our stories when we know they are not being met with judgment!

It never fails to inspire me whenever I get the chance to be spend time in someone’s writing “guest room,” Patricia! And I love your imagery here, because I think in order to really smell the roses we have to do it without the ticking of the clock in our ears. So, even as my kids all grow into adults, I want to put on the brakes for them, to listen with both ears to the stories about their world, because they are an invitation into their lives.
Thank you for curating this beautiful community of readers, writers, thinkers, and lovers!