Sip and Savor

Living in today's world is tricky. If you're not flashy and loud, you can easily be overlooked. You better talk fast, think fast and move fast.

Seems that folks don't want to sit still long enough to finish anything and they may as well live in a box. They don't brew their own coffee, cook their own meals or shop for their own groceries anymore. Everything is done online or through some sort of express lane.

Kids get frustrated when their games don't load fast enough. They have to be entertained at the supper table, in the car, at the doctor, at grandma's. Letters are no longer written, books no longer read, phone calls no longer needed. Text, audio books or just-get-the-movie-version-as-soon-as-possible is the new normal.

Modern conveniences are awesome! Some make life so easy! I love my new washer, Amazon is my hero and I'm not big on phone conversations. Emojis have made my texting quick and easy thus, conversation has become strange to me. My husband once said that I write much better than I talk... If you've ever gotten a voicemail from me you'd agree with him 110%. I've caught myself stumbling words out of order as I'm trying to make a statement aloud, it's like my mouth can't keep up with my head. It's especially frustrating when I'm trying to ask a question, voice a concern or get a point across. Honestly, I talk to myself out loud all the time and I'm not even very good at that.

Having difficulty getting words out in a situation where people are busy and their heads are full of 100 million things is not new. But it is daunting. What do you do? Can you condense your story or question? Do you give up and just stop trying to conversate?

Recently some dear friends of mine set a date and time to come out and visit me. I was excited to see them and had lots of things running around in my head. What will we do? What will we talk about? I have a tendency to ramble when there's a lull in conversation...I wanted to make something for them, bake or create...but I had a calm come over me that said, "Just stop. Just be open and peaceful." So, I was.

What a great time of just visiting we had. They brought a full out "Tea". A serious Tea Time with home-baked scones that were out of this world, then scrumptious chicken salad and fruit all served on Grandmother's china. The fragility of the china seemed to make us slow down and savor the time. We chatted about family and just spent time catching up. It was lovely.

Once we finished eating, we sat on the porch and visited until time for them to head back to the city before the traffic picked up. I never felt like I needed to make up conversation or do anything. I didn't even have to show them where stuff was in my kitchen!

After they left, I had time to process the visit before returning to "duty". It was refreshing to have visitors that didn't expect or want anything while they were at my home. Not that everyone who comes to visit expect or want anything from me, but I like everyone to be comfortable and feel welcome so I try to make sure of that, even if I'm not real sure what makes them comfortable or feel welcome...

Of course, I was reminded of Mary and Martha. Just to refresh your memory; Jesus was passing through their village and good ol'e Martha said, "Hey, why don't y'all come on over to my house and hang out a while? Rest your bones and grab a bite!" So, Jesus and his buddies decided to do just that.

Well, Martha went into hostess overdrive and was whirling about trying to make everyone feel comfortable and welcome instead of visiting with her visitors. All the while her sister, Mary, just sat around visiting with the guys.

Eventually, Martha got perturbed. She kept trying to get Mary to notice she needed help. She was probably huffing, shooting darts from her eyes, clanging dishes and stomping back and forth trying to get Mary's attention. Not that I know what one would do in that type of situation, but I'd guess these actions were likely...

All the time Martha was scurrying about, Mary was just sitting on the living room floor, right in front of Jesus. She kept sitting there, on her knees, legs folded underneath her, hands in her lap, head up and mouth agape. Like a little kid watching a riveting cartoon on Saturday morning, her eyes were wide open and she was still as a statue.

Finally, Martha had enough. She was embarrassed of her sister and totally ticked off at her all at the same time. She marched in to the living room, wiping her hands on her dirty apron; then she blew a stray strand of hair from her face and said to Jesus, "Hey! Don't you care that my sister is just sitting there like a dead-duck letting me do all this work by myself?"

Jesus looked from Mary's cherub face to Martha's wrinkled-up-angry-hands-on-hips silhouette. (the kitchen was brighter than the living room so He couldn't really see her very well. But, He's Jesus so He knew...yeah, He knew.) ...and He said, "Martha, Martha", (she bobbed her head like "Umhumm.") you are too worked up about unimportant stuff. Your mind is worried and full of everything except what is needed. Mary is a smart lady. She knows what's important and I'll not tell her to do anything else. (I'm paraphrasing but you can look up what He really said. Luke 10:38-42)

Then, with a Cheshire grin, Mary turned her face from Jesus to Martha, then back to Jesus, intently ready to listen.

I'm pretty sure that Martha dropped her hands to her sides, lost her angry expression and gave in to plopping down on the floor. Probably not right next to Mary, but pretty close, and sat Criss-cross-applesauce, not like Mary was sitting, then proceeded to hear the amazing stories that Jesus was telling. AND, I'm pretty confident that Jesus didn't worry about cutting His sentences short, trying to get someone's attention or having interruptions of text dings, phone calls or whines from bored children. No one there would wave their hands in a circle while giving a tilted head look in effort to get Him to hurry His story along. Likely, those in attendance weren't thinking about the laundry that needed to be put away, the dog that needs to be fed or the dishes in the sink either. They sat and listened. Hung on every word.

I'd venture to say, those guys left Martha's home feeling new, refreshed and with a different outlook on life. They probably didn't care what her home looked like nor what she was trying to serve them. They may not have partaken of any drink or food. They didn't need to. Filled with the Salt of the Earth, who would need anything else? Besides, He said, "...one thing is needful". They got it. They got it all.

SO-I'm looking very forward to my next visitors! I'm excited to see how I feel. Will I feel the need to entertain them or will they be more willing to just chat...One thing is certain, I will challenge myself to listen intently, and sit still...