Pauses

Life is busy; the work commute, hours at work, volunteer activities, attending to the house, paying bills, taking care of responsibilities--all the things we "do" throughout our routines.  And in the busyness of things, our inherent nature is to "manage" that busyness, to control as much of that activity as possible.  Sometimes, managing that busyness is good, achievable, and necessary; sometimes, it's better to let things come to a pause...

This past week brought me an enjoyable pause of my own as I traveled to Nebraska to be with my youngest daughter & her husband as she underwent shoulder surgery to repair a rotator cuff injury.

I'm pleased to report the surgery went well & the patient recovering nicely, though she is a bit stubborn and returned to classes after only a week of rest (the doctor told her two weeks)--apparently she takes after her father, or so I'm told :-P  Nonetheless, all is progressing well. But the best part of this pause came not in the form of being away from work or the craziness of the metropolis of Northern Virginia or even the quietness of small-town Nebraska; the pleasure & joy of this pause came in just getting to be with my daughter.  We watched episodes of favorite TV shows streamed on Apple TV (whenever she was awake), talked about school plans and the remaining  semesters (when she was awake), imagined our futures  (when she was awake), and critiqued Food Network recipes (whenever she was awake...pain mess are funny that way!).  All in all, a cherished memory for Dad in spite of the circumstances...

Pauses are good things and necessary...chose to MAKE them instead of having to TAKE them. :-)