First Baptist Church of Herndon

It is just routine

Linda Soller | Aug 05, 2013

Vacation is over and it’s time to get back to my routine. It seems I work for the whole year in anticipation of my vacation but when I get home I’m ready for fall. In part I think it’s because it makes me feel like I am moving right along in the direction of the next summer vacation. But I also know that it’s because I like routine. The family vacation has even slipped in to a comfortable routine, at least for my generation. I make coffee each morning when I get up. We sit and visit on the porch solving the problems of the world, finding out what’s going on in each other’s lives and gradually working up the energy to go down to the beach. The umbrellas are up by nine and slowly but surely we head down. We are the last to leave the beach by request and most often switch over to our little folding beach chairs and sit for another hour, chatting about whatever crosses our minds before we head back to the house. It is a rough day but someone has to do it.

This was the first summer vacation without my dad and we really missed him. There were parts of our vacation time so tightly connected to him that we found ourselves pausing as we thought – now who will do this task since dad is not here? In each case someone stepped up to fill in and without discussion the routine continued. We also learned our extended family will be growing in the winter and that provided much entertainment and joy. Family members came and went as their schedules permitted and another time of family sharing became part of the family history.

With the end of the beach rental the small remaining group drove to their respective homes to resume their routines. It may seem that I am sad, but really I’m not. It’s the routines of our lives that give us comfort, confidence, and for me the routines provide hope. There is something wonderful about knowing that I can look forward to next summer’s vacation. There is an easiness that comes with returning home from a vacation and being able to pick up where I left off. We can’t know for sure how long we will be on this earth but we can look forward with hope to the things we love. We can take comfort in the people who surround us. We can enjoy the interruptions to our routines, like weddings, and the birth of babies, and then blend those new lives in to our lives. Routines are like the lines on the road that guide us and show us what to do even when they change now and then.

It’s easy to be thankful for a wonderful vacation, but it is important to be thankful for the routines that shapes our days and weeks. God has given us a new day, and as routine as it may seem, it’s a blessing.

Have a great week :o) Linda