The Weekend

Daily Gratitude Year Four-Day 336: Today, I am grateful for the weekend. No the individual day, but a designated cluster of time that is outside of the typical "work week". 

This is end of two weeks of burning the candle at both ends. Full days. Busy nights. Good stuff, but sleep gets traded. Sleep is such a precious commodity. I save "the weekend" for the end of the year because most Friday's I think it would be the perfect gratitude selection. On Friday 47...I am going to finally use and choose it. (I have a self imposed rule of no repeats in 365 days) I am grateful for the weekend. 

A weekend begins at the end of Friday's work day and lasts until bedtime on Sunday. It is the time we use to "catch up" on household chores, shopping, time with friends and, of course, some Sabbath time for worship and restoration of the spirit before another week begins.  

The end of any week can be a volatile time, because we are tired. The tongue is harder to control. The concentration struggle is real. The physical and mental demands of work... any work paid or volunteer... leave us spent out and ready for a little rest. 

One of my favorite reminders from Genesis is that on the seventh day God rested. Our creative God made us in his image. He chose rest to enjoy what he had made. 

And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done.3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.-Genesis 2:2-3

The Sabbath is different from "the weekend" but it is a part of it. God labored 6 days before a rest. We do, too, most weeks. If we have commitments outside the home at all, Saturday is a catch-up day around the house. There is something about the weekend where the clock is ours to command that makes it good. 

Yes, there are things we have to do, but we when we get to them is a choice. I do my hair appointments at 6:30 am on Saturday mornings. It is how I preserved my precious Saturday. (And... I love having Cori do my hair for the day.) Now, on Friday night... "O'Dark Thirty" doesn't sound so great, but by 9am on Saturday, I am grateful for the decision. I am grateful Cori does early appointments (and she ends her salon day earlier on Saturday to be with family). 

Time is a precious commodity. Weekends are the best. Reflecting God's example helps us make the most of our days and choosing rest is good for our human design. 

Today, I am grateful for the weekend.