I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the “reset” buttons in our lives: the things that make us feel truly like ourselves. They are the small creature comforts we turn to at the end of the day, or the childhood home we run to in our memory or reality.
In our life, our children have often provided the reset buttons. As toddlers, nothing made them come back to their equilibrium point faster than a trip to a McDonald’s play place. Many times, especially when traveling in unfamiliar or stressful territory, we’d just halt our journey long enough to spend forty five minutes in a play place, de-stressing. Some of our favorite family memories were developed in brightly colored tubes and ball pits: Jillian coming down a tube with no clothes on just to see our surprise, the Christmas in New Hampshire when our little village was snowed in and we spent the better part of two days in the glass enclosed space watching the snow drift and pile. Later in our lives, shopping malls provide the breath of familiarity that we all need.
I’ve written frequently about my own reset buttons. My favorite moment of the day comes when I flop in my lounge chair on the back porch with my cup of coffee and whatever latest book is at hand. Reset, indeed. Or the scent of the bookstore (best ever!), or singing the songs I need to hear in church among the people I love.
God programed that need to reset every so often into our native operating systems. I believe that’s why he treats us to a sunrise and sunset every day. “Stop and see, children, all is well. My sun rises and sets no matter what.” I think it’s why he told us to celebrate feast days, and remember his last supper. All of these things have the effect of pressing our reset button so we can go boldly into each day with a clean slate and a new heart. His unforced rhythms of Grace provide the backdrop and stability that our feeble minds need.
For this reason, I’m teaching myself to notice the moments of my days, to find and press the reset button as often as needed. I’m thankful I don’t need to spend as much time in loud and crazy play grounds any more, but I also need to remember to help my children find their own reset buttons. It’s a good concept.
