An Anniversary Road Trip.....and a Surprise Gift!

It's been a week since our actual anniversary.  We waited to officially celebrate it until this weekend because our kids would be gone for three days.  Why squeeze into one dinner out what you can do in two or three days?  So we took off Friday at noon (because Scott always  has to stop in at church for "no more than 10 minutes") on our road trip adventure.  My husband has the best sense of direction of anyone I know - a gift I have yet to receive.  So, naturally, the back roads is where we rode.  I brought knitting and reading to do in the car because I have a hard time sitting still and not doing something.  Interestingly, I found myself mesmerized by all I saw.  Beautiful flowers, lush green trees, small towns with flag-lined streets, clotheslines draped with laundry blowing in the breeze, a horse and buggy, and so much more.  It was delightful and I never got to any of my time-filling tasks.  I wonder how many times I said, "This is glorious!" in two days?

We skipped lunch but stopped along the way for a cup of coffee and shared a piece of pie.  We sat out in the sun and chatted.  We talked all afternoon about all sorts of things - the serious to the silly.  We listened to a few sermons from Scott's ipod and discussed them.  It's such a blessing to enjoy each others company.

Eventually, we checked in to our hotel in and decided we'd have an early dinner to beat the crowds.  Have you ever been to P.F.Changs?  We have - once - but this dinner was outstanding!  (I highly recommend the shrimp with candied walnuts and mixed fried rice. Unbelievable flavors!)  We stuffed ourselves silly as we sat out on the patio and had our usual anniversary talk. I always ask the same question annually, "Knowing what you know now, would you still marry me?".  He always says yes, sometimes with a longer pause than the year before :).  Later he asks, "Where do you see us in five years?"  My answer is usually the same, "I don't care as long as we're together.".

We talked and held hands and walked inside and outside for the rest of the evening.  We enjoyed not having to be somewhere or have any reason to look at a watch.  Rest is good.  But it wasn't until Saturday afternoon that I was most blessed by our adventure.  After breakfast outside at the hotel (we ate every single meal outside!), we drove to Canandaigua and found a double swing on the shore of the lake. There's something special about being near the water.  I think I forgot to mention a quick trip to Walmart for some Benadryl because Scott's allergies kicked in and his eye swelled nearly shut.  It was pretty creepy!  The weather was perfect.  We sat and we read, Scott napped and we were quiet.  When he awoke, he was messing around on his phone and he told me what our son, Drew, posted on his facebook:

"we as humans don't like quiet because we don't like God shouting in our ears. #weshouldwanttohearfromGod"

I smiled because I knew he was attending the Founder's Conference up at Word of Life - which means he was directly quoting the speaker for that hour.  I thanked God that our son is a sermon junkie like his parents.  Then I considered the quote. We don't hear God's voice audibly, but He speaks through His Word when we slow down and "listen".  It's hard to notice all the ways God wants to enter our thoughts and world when we've filled it with noise and activity.  If we're not used to silence, we rarely arrange our lives to experience it.  Yet, as we sat by the lake, that's what it was.  Quiet.  For a few hours, Scott wasn't talking and I wasn't talking.  After a while, we walked a half a mile or so by the shore, there still didn't seem to be anything to say. Keep in mind that Scott and I are both social - we love to be talking to others all the time. Remarkably, it didn't feel like anything was missing.  There's a comfortable silence that produces peace.  That's what today was like.  And it was glorious!

I didn't realize how much I needed  to stop moving and be still.  Just to sit and look around and be thankful for all the beauty God has provided for our pleasure.  The last few days had been kind of rough mentally.  I'd been putting a lot of information in my mind and  trying to make sense of it.  I found it exhausting and overwhelming. Brain overload.  Have you ever felt that way?  I was very preoccupied and a little worried that it might ruin our weekend away.  So, I asked God before we left to help me set it aside for a few days so I could focus on enjoying my husband and this rare treat to be alone together for a few days before the summer craziness sets in.  Surely, the quiet all day today was God's gift to my overloaded mind.  For what seemed like a long time, I just sat there and thought about all that God is doing in my life and how I've seen Him at work in the lives of others we have witnessed recently.  It was so encouraging and I sensed God's close presence and pleasure.  I gave thanks.  There is no substitute for to taking time to rest and be quiet. 

I think the gift was for Scott too or maybe he was just enjoying my not talking so much!  When we made our last stop for dinner, eating outside again (he's such a trooper - allergies or not), we were back to chatting away.  We enjoyed a sweet contentment for the rest of the ride home.  After all, we had a new cd to listen to a few times...or more :)!

We're back home now and will jump into our regular routine tomorrow morning and have our kids back before we know it but we are better for having taken off for a little bit.  As for you, who have read all the way to the end, there's still two days left in this holiday weekend and  I hope that you can find some quiet moments in God's presence where you will find peace.  Then do it as often as you can after that!

"Be still and know that I am God."  Ps. 46:10
"He leads me beside still waters, He restores my soul."  Ps. 23:2,3