Refreshing Weariness

Last night I received a text message; “Ma, my flight is coming in tomorrow at 9:48.” I gulped in disbelief. I wasn’t done preparing for her coming. Why, she wasn’t supposed to arrive for two more days! I could hardly believe my text.

Then an additional text arrived; “Hey, we’re stopping over in Albuquerque for the night, we’re about 8 hours out, see you tomorrow evening.” Both of these texts conveyed the same idea to me: “You’ve got another long night, Virginia. What you thought you could get done in the morning, more leisurely, must be completed tonight, because you’ll need to leave early in the morning to meet that flight on time.

I was beside myself with joy, and praying for another burst of energy! Not just one, but two of my three daughters were converging upon my home on the same day! Hallelujah! Yet, woe is me! Just when I thought I had timed it precisely, then bang! The plans were changed. I also thought about the second coming of Christ, where we are urged to “…be ye also ready, for in such an hour as ye think not, the Son of Man cometh.” Matthew 24:44

These two daughters had not been together in my home for over two years, when the eldest one was married. Now here they were, together again with me for the holidays, I was tickled pink to be so honored. I thought about my third daughter; she’s more of a loner, meaning when she visits, she seems to prefer doing it alone with just her family. I think it is because I dote over my girls and she would prefer having it all to herself and not sharing. (These are just my thoughts, not fact.)

For the last two weeks, I have been diligently shopping and preparing for these ladies. Because we are all vegan, food preparation can be exhaustive and time consuming. Therefore, as carefully as possible, I began making and freezing food, being cautious to remember that one is allergic to anything coconut and the other to anything chocolate. Hence, I prepared homemade breakfast patties, a plant based protein loaf, especial healthy biscuits with flax, cheese sauce for those distinctive dishes, mock tofu chicken, banana nut bread and a “no chocolate”, chocolate silk pie. I wanted to have as much food prepared ahead of time as possible, so that our time spent together could be used in other ways. I still had to prepare zucchini walnut patties, with extra onions for the eldest girl, and sweet potato pie for my son-in-law; he had put in a special request.

It was extremely exhausting, especially having to keep up with my other daily chores, my husband who was recovering from surgery and preparing for a speaking engagement in another city.  However, God is good and He sustains us during our most stressful times.

I have learned that it doesn’t really matter how much painstaking time and energy you have to exert for incoming guests, as long as it is being done for those whom you love, or even for those who would be grateful for the privilege of being in your presence is a sweet reward. It is a ‘refreshing weariness’ when you see the joy and exhilarated bliss expressed by them.

Although, I could stand a deep tissue massage, right about now, the warm embrace by my baby at the airport, and the anticipation of another by my eldest, in a few short hours is an awesome substitute. Happy Holidays everybody, and Merry Christmas to those who would like to return to the old days! I pray that your days are filled with as much "refreshing weariness"as mine.  LOL

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