Stop the glorification of busy (#31 days to Sanctuary day 3)

"How are you?" we ask.  "Oh, okay, just BUSY," they answer.  We nod in affirmation and agreement, shake our heads to demonstrate our level of over-commitment, and continue on our hectic way.  "Busy" has become a default answer, a status symbol reminding ourselves and others that we are important.  But it comes at a cost.  We lose the ability to make genuine connections in our rush past people.  Our health is impacted when we don't make the time to care for ourselves.  Our frantic pace continues with no end in sight.

The verse repeats through my cluttered mind, "What would it profit a person to gain the whole world but lose her soul?"

I taught a short term class entitled "Spirituality For Busy People" and was surprised when the class filled to capacity and had a waiting list.  There is a hunger for spirituality, even as we're perplexed as to how to fit one more thing in our packed schedules.  I think there's a different way to look at it, though.  Instead of another draining task, caring for our spirit is life-giving, renewing our passion and energy so that we can truly engage with life from a place of wholeness and health.  It's not as complicated or nebulous as it may seem.  Often it's as simple as having the eyes to see the wonders of the divine all around us.  It's pausing for a moment to savor the beauty of a fall day; it's pausing in the relentless scheduling of tasks to appreciate the moment you're in.

What renews you?  What activity do you get wonderfully lost in?  Do that.  Take a moment today to simply breathe in and be grateful for life and breath.  When someone asks how you are, pause for a time of true conversation.  Perhaps we can begin to see that instead of busy, our lives are full, engaged, and abundant.

MaryAnn McKibben Dana shared this well in a video that is a supplement to her wonderful book, Sabbath in the Suburbs.  I highly recommend the book and video: