Holiday Chaos
Go, Go, Go! Are you being taken hostage by an endless to-do list for the sake of tradition, duty and other’s expectations? Adrenaline propels us from one thing to another. This causes our own weighty sense of urgency to contract our shoulder muscles into knots of stress and furrow our brows in tension. Uncontrolled waves of holiday demands crash without mercy and drown our hearts and minds. Furthermore, this cruelty of chaos becomes a bad fuel for our soul, polluting our system until all sense of gratitude is lost. However, we can repair this broken fuel problem on our Thanksgiving journey. Pull the emergency brake and stop! Pullover and take a breather to refocus!
A Hero-Mechanic
My husband, Tony has earned the title of Hero Mechanic. As a result, he gets random calls from motorists in need. We recently received such a call when our friend Omar needed help. Omar had just made a routine stop to refill his gas. Then, without realizing it, Omar filled his gasoline vehicle with Diesel fuel. Our personal hero-mechanic gave Omar the process to fix the problem. First, remove the fuel pump. Then, siphon the diesel from the fuel tank. Lastly, refill with the correct fuel. Because he was willing to ask for help, Omar was able to execute good instructions and drive home. Sometimes it takes the people in our life to remind us that it is time to slow down, unplug and make an adjustment. Omar needed a friend. Likewise, there are times we need to ask for help in this process of soul repair.
Siphon Out The Bad Fuel
Much like Omar’s bad fuel experience, the “busyness of life” and the “urgency” of holiday hustle and bustle can mistakenly become the fuel of our soul this time of year. Consequently, the bad fuel becomes a robber of the truly important things in life. It makes us stall and sputter and run with less efficiency. Ann Voskamp, gives us a glimpse of this phenomenon in her book One Thousand Gifts, A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are;
“Being in a hurry. Getting to the next thing without fully entering the thing in front of me. I cannot think of a single advantage I’ve ever gained from being in a hurry. But a thousand broken and missed things, tens of thousands, lie in the wake of all the rushing…. Through all that haste I thought I was making up time. It turns out I was throwing it away.”
This Gratitude Expert has a point. Being in a hurry robs us of the things that make life rich and meaningful. This problem of human nature compels us to take action and to siphon out the cycle of chaos from our weary soul.
Re-Fuel With Gratitude
Removing the failed fuel of the soul, the fuel of endless chaos, for the good fuel of gratitude is an easy way to smooth out your holiday journey. Where do you begin? As we purposefully siphon chaos from our soul tank, we make room for the good fuel of gratitude. Next, with room in our tank, we can choose to be present in the moment, to eliminate the need for perfection, and to place people first. Eliminating chaos, we are fueled with thankfulness for the people we love, the abundance we enjoy, and the faith we share, to name a few. In conclusion, consider the possibility that the greatest repair you could treat yourself to this holiday has nothing to do with your vehicle. Instead, a tune-up of the soul may be your most worthwhile investment. Happy Thanksgiving from Tony and I and the team at Heritage!
