where waves grow sweet

A few years ago, I read a post by an interior design blogger who talked about “quieting a space” before proceeding with a design update. “It’s helpful,” she said, “because it gives us an opportunity to have new vision for the room without it being cluttered by what is already there.” “This,” she explained, “enables us to determine what design will best suit the current needs of our life and family.” Anything old that meets that criteria remains; the rest is set aside or given away. Likewise, anything new would also have to reflect the room’s updated mission.

It hit me yesterday that Covid-19, while an awful presence on so many counts, has done many of us a service that we can’t often choose for ourselves: Quieting the space in our lives. It’s hard to say what things will look like on the other side, but I’m guessing it may be tempting to grab all the old things that filled our pre-pandemic space and pick up where we left off in a desire to regain a sense of familiarity and normalcy – even if those things don’t best serve our families at this point (if they ever did).

So what if we take this stripped-down opportunity to prayerfully assess the needs and priorities of this season, adding back in only what would best accomplish that mission and setting aside the rest? Just a thought…

Photo by Simplify Magazine