Reflection on 2013

The closing of a year provides opportunity to stop and reflect on what has been and to look ahead to what will be.


2013 was my year to be brave. That was my New Year's resolution on 1st January 2013.


By January 16th I was able to report:


'My new year's resolution was to be braver so far...
Holiday for 1 booked
Tried beetroot in a chilli concoction - ok
Tried fig yoghurt - yuck
Tried muesli - I found one without nuts - jury out
Found muesli bar no nuts - yum'


Being brave continued throughout the year. I started exercising, this in itself may not seem to be an action that requires bravery, but let me assure you it did. I started swimming and I started spinning. In August I just about managed to swim 10 lengths and survive a spinning class. Now I can manage 30 lengths and would go so far as to say I enjoy swimming.


My holiday in Greece was for the most part enjoyable. I made new friends and experienced new things and I stood up for what I believe in.


At house group we have started a year of Biblical Womanhood. So far we have covered chapters on Domesticity, Obedience and Gentleness. We are just three months in but so far it has been a positive journey.


As the year draws to an end, bravery continues to be the theme. It is not just me who needs to be brave, but also my friends and their families. Cancer has struck at the heart of two families that I know and love. As they battle with this, I will continue to pray for them, be brave for them and stand along side them.


This too gave cause for reflection. We can spend so much time pondering what has been and what may be that we forget to live life now. To live in the moment and to focus on what is happening around us is as important as planning for the future. Having the courage to get on and do with faith is going to be part of being brave in 2014.

Domesticity

As November has come to an end, I have been reflecting on my month of Domesticity.  It is a word I think much maligned in today's society because of the image it conjures of the '1950's housewife', as I have discovered domesticity is much more than this.

Domesticity is about cooking and cleaning, but it is about so much more than cooking and cleaning. Domesticity is about running a home, budgeting, decision making, cooking and cleaning.  It is a task that requires time, and one which perhaps I neglect to give time to as I believe that I should 'just' be able to do these things without giving proper time to them.  What I have come to realise (and perhaps knew all along) is that domesticity is hard work.

Cleaning the house is hard work.  House work is called house work for a reason.  It takes time and I have to confess that when my house is clean and tidy I feel so much better. It is so much easier to live in a clean and tidy home than it is in a messy and dirty environment.  So allowing some time for cleaning is important.  Not just actual cleaning, also spiritual cleaning.  Allowing time in life to site with God and spring clean is also so very important.

Cooking is something that I love to do.  It is something that I do not always give myself enough time for.  If I want to eat a healthy, balanced diet, then allowing time for the cooking of food is important.  I set myself two challenges in November, with a third at the last moment.  I committed to cook bread.  This I have done, in fact as I type there is bread rising in the kitchen.  I also committed to cook nutritious food for myself.  I have been better at this.  In the last week or so of November, I also decided that I should master the baking of scones.  This afternoon, we have had freshly baked scones and jam.  Despite my protestation to the contrary, it seems that I can indeed bake scones, cheesy ones and plain!

Budgeting is an essential part of running the home.  Making sure that there is money for bills and for food, is a part of domesticity.  Making wise decisions when shopping for food and supplies.  Being aware of the origin of your purchases, the food miles, the 'organicness' of your produce.  Is what is being bought fair trade, is it harmful to the environment.  There are so many choices and decisions to make each and every time we budget and purchase.

 As I reflect, the word I see jumping out of the page at me again and again is time.  Domesticity requires time.  As the pressures on time are so great in our current society I realise that how I choose to use my time is so very important.  Allowing time for domesticity needs to be moved higher in my priorities. As we continue through our Year of Biblical Womanhood, I wonder how else I will choose to change the way I use my time.