Friesencold

At the beginning of January, TJ and I implemented what we are calling “Arts Hour.” It takes place from 9-10 pm several evenings a week. The evenings vary, but it probably averages three evenings a week. The idea is to stop whatever else we are doing and participate in the arts, whether it is reading, writing, listening to music, playing music (this would be TJ and his guitar), or even watching some or all of a movie. What Arts Hour cannot include is the TV (movies are okay) or the computer. So if I want to write, I can write on paper to type onto the blog later, or I can write a letter to someone, which is something I really enjoy. So far this month, all I have done is read during Arts Hour. TJ has been reading some too. He isn’t quite as into Arts Hour yet as I am, but he is still taking time at least a couple nights a week to sit and read or sit and sit. Nothing wrong with just sitting.

What is this life if full of care / We have no time to stand and stare? -W.H. Davies

TJ is currently reading Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller. The three books I’m reading are listed on the Books page of the blog. I really like reading books of different genres all at once. I like having a health or nutrition-related book to read because it keeps me motivated to prepare healthy meals and I just find the material very interesting. I like reading a good work of fiction because a good story is a great escape. And I like reading a non-fiction book by a favorite author such as Anne Lamott, Madeleine L’Engle, Kathleen Norris, Frederich Buechner, or Henri Nouwen because it makes me want to be a better me. It pushes me toward God in a way only words can.

We have our small group on Monday nights and I have decided to use one other evening each week to make plans with a friend for coffee or the like. It’s been good knowing I have the option to plan to meet a different friend each week, but also knowing there is a boundary set so I don’t end up making too many plans. It seems my friend outings have been on Thursday nights so far. TJ doesn’t get home from work until at least 8:30 on Saturday nights, so we don’t do Arts Hour on Saturdays. That means Arts Hour is usually scheduled for Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. Friday would make a good night to watch a movie for Arts Hour, although we haven’t done that yet. Last Friday night, we went out on a date to dinner and the bookstore. We had a $25 gift certificate to a new restaurant in downtown Naperville, The Black Finn, so we got to eat for free, and then we sat in Barnes and Noble and read our books for a while. I guess we had Arts Hour after all, although I am just now thinking of that.

I like how setting aside the time to read seems to make time go slower. Even if I have a bunch of other things I could do to fill an hour’s time, stopping to read or listen to music or both while drinking hot tea and having a few Fudge Babies is about the most strategic thing I can think of in the way of slowing down my life and being intentional with its direction.