A Slower Pace

The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. (John 1:35-39 ESV). The first line of the Washington Post article read: “It took a global pandemic to slow us down.” The author of the article went on to write a wonderful description of her new normal. Erin O’Connor said: The boys’ first spring baseball tournament was canceled and our daughter’s state gymnastic meet was scrapped. Instead, we watched “The Sound of Music” and ate chips on the living room couch. The children’s schools are closed, and we are lucky enough to have jobs that allow us to predominantly work from home. Rather than driving the children to and from extracurricular activities in the evenings, we now review essays and math problems we assigned them earlier in the day. We eat dinner together on a daily basis, instead of devouring to-go meals in the minivan. We take evening family walks to relieve restlessness. My husband and I enjoy watching our kids, ages 13, 11, 9 and 9, run outside and play with one another. While I’m not going to say there haven’t been arguments, our children have been forced to appreciate the companionship their siblings provide.

It isn’t that hard for me to remember both the slower pace of decades ago and the slower pace of my present. The great difference is that I somehow feel guilty for going slowly now. I’m certain that was not the case in the late 50’s and early 60’s when I was an older adolescent. I remember one particular experience of those times when I wanted to go see my grandmother. She lived across the island from us. It was just a short trip by car, but both longer and much more dangerous for a ten year old riding his bicycle. I made the trip weaving in and out of the sparse traffic of those days and arrived just a bit before lunch. Grandma always had something cooking. This day I was greeted with eggplant parmesan and spaghetti with meat sauce. Grandma Emmitte never cooked a little, and it was always made from scratch. Her pasta was phenomenal! I ate my fill finishing just about the time my Dad walked in. It seems she had called him and said, “Frankie (only called that by his mother), your boy rode his bike to the house again.” That’s how it always ended; but, it was always worth it! It was always worth it because I got to spend some time with my grandma and have a great meal! He broken English mixed with Italian was always harder to understand than her gestures of love and acceptance. That’s how the pace was. Perhaps this season of Lent, in the midst of this crisis, you will see it as a good time to slow down and spend some time with both your family and “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). It will be worth it! The first disciples spent the day with Jesus… they were never the same!