The sabbath: A day of rest

The phrase must have been coined by someone without children. I'm not sure I remember the last time the sabbath felt like a day of rest for me. In fact, I think I'm more exhausted after Sunday than any other day of the week. It definitely prepares me for the week in the sense that I'm ready for Monday if that means I don't have to do Sunday again for another week. Merely getting out the door for church is something that requires advanced planning and coordination and must be executed with precision. We have church at 9a.m. My sister asked me what time I have to get up to get seven people to church on time. The answer is 6:30. I get up earlier on Sunday than I do the rest of the week.

Sunday consists of meetings, and entertaining children in meetings is exhausting. Keeping five children 8 and under quiet and still during Sacrament meeting is a daunting task. There's a great deal of hall wandering, shushing, and please don't kick the bench in front of us, required. Then after the three hour block, I get the opportunity to stay after to play for the choir. (Can you really call two altos, one soprano and a bass a choir?) Meanwhile, my dear husband gets to take the kids home and wrangle them through lunch. (Serves him right since I get to do it the rest of the week!) Then we either have "nap time", which is more or less a joke anymore, make dinner, or rush off to Grandma's house for dinner. Grandma's house is actually a really good thing on Sunday. It gives the kids something to do on a day when I won't let them play with their friends. I get a little break and gear up for next week.

While the sabbath isn't a day of physical rest for me, it is a day of spiritual rest. And that's what it's all about. I may only get a smidgen between the hall walking and the restless children. But it's there and it's where I'm supposed to be. So while I may complain about how hard it is, you'll find us at church every week, noisy children and all!