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One word. Five minutes to write about it. This is the idea behind Five Minute Friday and this is today's free-writing post.
more of the same
same old same old
on the same page
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When asked how things have been going, my answer has often been, "oh, you know . . . same old same old." Nothing new to report. Things have been going along but nothing way out of the ordinary or that stands out as so fantastic or so dismal that I need to tell about it.
It sounds boring. When life is just more of the same, we often see it as a negative thing. But at the same time, we can get quite upset when there are changes happening around us and we are unsettled by it, or the things we liked as they were will not be same any more. We can either rejoice or lament the fact that things won't be the same.
We discover and invent new ways of finding out the same old things. ~Hal Hartley
There is a comfort and confidence that comes from knowing what we can count on to be the same. It's not good to be stuck in a rut of the same old same old and never grow or learn. But neither is it good to always be on shifting sand, living a life where nothing is reliable, trustworthy, or solid.
Without constancy there is neither love, friendship, nor virtue in the world. ~Joseph Addison
I have always argued that change becomes stressful and overwhelming only when you've lost any sense of the constancy of your life. You need firm ground to stand on. From there, you can deal with that change. ~Richard Nelson Bolles
We do need some things to stay the same, to be the anchor that keeps us safe when we try new things or are faced with changes and uncertainties beyond our control. We need to know where we are safe and who we can count on.
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
~Hebrews 13:8~
It doesn't get more straightforward that that. Jesus is that anchor, that solid rock, that we can always count on. God says he is always making things new and doing new things, and that's exciting! But his word, his character, and his promises are constant and sure. His love and faithfulness never changes. He is the same through eternity.
In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
They will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.
Like clothing you will change them
and they will be discarded.
But you remain the same,
and your years will never end.
The children of your servants will live in your presence;
their descendants will be established before you.
~Psalm 102:25-28~
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I decided that Rhythm would be my WOTY and one way I'm trying to establish a rhythm is by keeping a very brief daily diary, to watch for daily and weekly patterns to develop and to be intentional about keeping the good ones going. I do like the rhythm of writing a phrase or sentence about each day and making it into a summary post. I was ready to skip the Five Minute Friday post this week until I realized that my June Rhythm post would be very much the same as May, and that maybe I should consider connecting the two posts. Sort of the same as what I did last month!
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Saturday, June 1st - The first day of June gets its own entry because we managed to fit in a fun outing. Our rhythm is usually to get together with our son and his family sometime on the weekend and go on an explore of some kind and then on the weekdays we stick to our "same old same old" work routines. Anyway, this Saturday we went to the Dawes Arboretum and saw some of the Big Bugs on the grounds. It was HOT that day, but we had a great time!
Week One
The first week of June was definitely one that seemed much the same as all the other weeks, but we capped it off with an adventure on the Saturday. After sticking to our well-established rhythm of the work days, it was a nice reward. My husband did go to work for a bit in the morning, but once he got home, we grabbed a fast food lunch and then headed up to Huron, a town on Lake Erie. We wound up going mostly on backroads which wasn't our intention, but turned out to be interesting. Once at Huron, we walked on the pier and at the lakeshore for a little bit and then ate an early dinner on the rooftop deck of a local eatery. Walleye Bites and one of my favorite foods - Lake Erie fried perch. It was a leisurely stroll back to the car, and then we drove on to Cleveland to take in a hockey game. We were cheering for the visiting team, the Hershey Bears, so we were disappointed that they lost to the Cleveland Monsters, but we had fun anyway!
Week Two - On Sunday after church, the kids came over and we went to Blacklick Metro Park and checked out the new canopy walk and another trail. The canopy walk opened just a couple weeks previous so it was crowded, but really cool. I bet it will be gorgeous once the leaves start to turn, and will afford better birding once the novelty has worn off and it's quieter. We broke up the rhythm of the weekdays by going to the Clippers baseball game on Tuesday. My chorus was singing the anthem! It was a gorgeous night. We ended the week with walks at Taylor Farm Park on Friday and Saturday and some welcome pool time.
Week Three - The week started the same as usual - church on Sunday, work and chorus on Monday. It was the last chorus rehearsal for a couple weeks, and we are now on a little break. On Wednesday we did go to family night at church but didn't stay very long as it was very hot and we were tired. Our weekend was not the same as usual because Kennady and Dan arrived on Friday evening, and we had a late dinner with them. On Saturday morning we all went to Super Chef for brunch (except hubby who did have to work) and then went to the park. Our granddaughter was happy to have Auntie Anne here to play with her! In the afternoon we took Kennady and Dan to the Arboretum and made sure to see all the Big Bugs. Cooled off with a swim in the evening and then had dinner and watched hockey.
Week Four - After church on Sunday, Kennady and Dan went out for lunch while hubby and I stayed at church for a worship team get-together. Later in the afternoon we went together to the Book Loft in the German Village and then while hubby went to hockey, the kids and I went home and had pizza and played Scrabble. I went to work late on Monday morning so I could see the kids off, and then the rest of the week was back to the "same old same old" for the most part. I had planned a dentist appointment on Wednesday, but since there wasn't an approval from insurance yet, I cancelled that and we're back to the drawing board there. On Friday evening, our son and his family came over for a short swim followed by dinner and game night, and our Saturday was a leisurely (read: lazy) day at home. I got a few things done but wasn't feeling very energetic.
Sunday, June 30th - And today was a quiet Sunday, very much the same as most other Sundays. I was at church by myself, since hubby had to go look after some problems at work, and then I went out for lunch with some friends. We've spent the rest of the day at home.
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| Jack-o'-melon carved by Kennady. 😎 |
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Rhythm is my Word of The Year for 2024 because I realized I'd need to adjust my routines and work on my time management as I started a full time work schedule, and I couldn't be striving or fighting all the time - I need to establish a healthy, balanced rhythm to my days and weeks. And additionally, in the last part of 2023, I felt like God had really been speaking to me about the subject of Sabbath, and that he was inviting me to be more intentional about practicing and celebrating a Sabbath rhythm in my life. Here's my WOTY post to explain: WQ - Rhythm Inspires
What's Been On My Calendar? #WBOYC
When my posting schedule coincides with the link-up I share at What's Been On Your Calendar #WBOYC hosted by Deb's World. That didn't happen this month.
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But! This post IS linked at Five Minute Friday for the word prompt "Same".
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