Spontaneous Sabbath

I got up this morning to the sound of my phone ringing. I know that the idiom I should have used there is "I woke up this morning," but that wouldn't be strictly true, since I was doing my weekly Saturday-morning-snooze-button-marathon when the phone rang. My sister replied to my groggy greeting with an offer to spend the day with her. Until recently, this wouldn't have been possible, but my recent move put us within 3 hours of one another. So I put off my to-do list of errands and Sunday preparations, packed my cooler, and hopped in my car.

We spent the afternoon picnicking, wandering around a state park, and talking. As we chatted, I was reminded of the amazing thing about my relationship with my sister: despite being polar opposites in political belief, disagreeing about theology, and having very different lives, we've managed to remain really close. While we sat on a bench watching the water, I was more relaxed than I've been in months, even with Sunday responsibilities hanging over my head.

But, as always, the sabbath didn't last. Between a minor fender-bender on the way there, and the never-ending game of Red Light/Green Light that is interstate driving on the east coast, I was reminded that such respites are Kairos within Chronos, holy times woven into the everyday insanity. At least sabbath returns us rested to our ordinary busyness.