Tonight I was watching Doctor Who in the front room of our house. I had made a little tortilla pizza, and I'd finished my soda with one slice left to eat. My brother was sitting in the next room on his laptop, a bit closer to the kitchen than I was, so I asked if he'd bring me a glass of water. He paused his video to bring me some.
I suddenly remembered the thousands of times I've asked my little brother to do things for me. Some were reasonable, others less. My whole family operates in this fashion, of asking for small acts of service or offering them. I don't mind it in the slightest now, it brings me a lot of joy to do small things for my family, but as a teenager it bothered me that I was always asked to let the dog out even though Dad was closer to the door. (Oddly, calling my sister in from across the house to do it when I was a few feet from the door was perfectly reasonable.)
But my dear brother, the overwhelming majority of the time, does these little acts with happiness. No fancier word for it, he is just happy. He shares his ice cream so Bit and I can have a girl's night in front of the TV. He spends ages brushing the dog because poor Frodo is so itchy, and the brush gives him some relief. He brings my parents their sodas from the cooler, because one of them inevitably forgets when they sit down to eat. He makes late night Walmart runs for Dad when he wants ice cream (we've both done it, not usually with excitement, but Cy is much less grumpy about it than I am).
This habit of little acts is what makes our home such a peaceful place. There are other factors, but I'd venture to say this is one of the most important. Small services, and the freedom to ask for them, nurtures a sense of reliance. In the best way. We lean on each other in tiny daily moments, and when the outside world is too much, it's our peaceful sanctuary of service we all return to. As our family grows older and the dynamic changes, I am more and more thankful for this environment. I love the little ways we offer to serve each other and the general peacefulness that lies over our home.
I'm still struggling with how to really make sense of peace, but today I am struck with how my battle with peace exists only outside my home. My family is not perfect, we have moments of frustration and annoyance. We don't always live up to each others expectations and sometimes we don't trust each other's intentions the way we should. Occasionally we disagree. But at the heart, we are at peace with each other. In our teasing and our service and our many, many car trips, my family has established peace that pervades the five of us. I hope I never take it for granted.
25 Days for Peace is a cooperative blogging experiment between myself and five other artists, designed to explore the facets of peace, particularly centered around this season intended to experience the peace of Christ. Visit this page to see the other contributions to this journey, and like it to join with us in exploring what peace means.
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