One Thing Leads to Another

So how was Earth Hour at your house, for those of you who participated?

We had a very low-light evening: despite the 30 or so tealights we lit, it was tough seeing the game area clearly. (Yay for Carcassonne!) Who knew that some brands of candles burn brighter than others?

Despite the candle problem, I thoroughly enjoyed the evening. Time seemed to slow down to the speed of life. My focus was undivided, given only to what was illuminated. With the switches flicked off, I could hear my body telling me I was tired.

As a family, we've been wanting to find a way to observe Sabbath for a few years. We went through a phase early in our marriage where we were very legalistic about Sabbath observance--among other things. (To those of you who were around for that phase, my apologies and thanks for your grace.)

But I feel that Sabbath is meant to be a gift to us and that we miss out when we don't figure out how to rest well. Earth Hour at our house felt like Sabbath. Relaxing, restorative, rejuvenating (re-, re-, re-!), an opportunity to give attention to the stuff that is crowded out by the hustle and bustle of daily life. I don't know exactly what it will look like, but I think Earth Hour just might be our "gateway drug" to some kind of weekly Sabbath observance. (^_^) Which I find appropriate, since I consider caring for our planet a moral and spiritual issue as much as a practical one.

First, though, we'll need some brighter candles.