Welcome Aboard the Hot Mess Express!

I am sitting here in my living room, sipping on coffee mixed with a packet of hot chocolate (with marshmallows!) at almost four in the afternoon, and to be completely honest… I’m starting to go a little stir crazy. We’ve been hit with a stretch of wild winter weather, and it has kept us out of school for 3 days, with another one tomorrow, just announced earlier this afternoon. While snow days are a gift at first – slower mornings, soft blankets, quiet moments – a whole week becomes a lot! Eventually I start craving routine again. I miss the rhythm of normal life. I miss my classroom. I miss kiddos more than my heart can stand. I miss the beautiful chaos of busy days.

Those first few days off this week truly felt like a Godsend. Last week, I started coming down with something that started out with a sore throat and mild coughing. However, that did not stop me from being a kid with my kids! I was still running full speed with my students, playing tag, catching Pokémon, being a kid at heart (and you better believe 6–7 is absolutely a thing in my classroom!), and soaking up every moment I could with them. Then Friday hit… and it all came crashing down. I had finally got hit with the flu that my kiddos had lovingly bestowed upon me (totally worth it!) It felt like I went from zero to sixty in less than twelve hours.

But amidst the aches and pains, and feeling like I had been run over by a semi truck, God taught me such a beautiful lesson:

Be still.

Those days of being sick stripped everything down to the basics. There was no productivity, no to-do lists being checked off, no “hustle.” Just rest. Sleep. Quiet. Prayer whispered between naps. And somehow, in that stillness, God met me right where I was. I found myself reflecting more than scrolling. Praying more than planning. Listening more than speaking.

As I started to feel better, I picked up my books again, soaking in stories and truths that reminded me how good it feels to slow down. It reminded me that rest is not laziness, it is obedience. Even Jesus withdrew to quiet places. Even God Himself rested on the seventh day. Yet somehow we convince ourselves we must constantly be “on” to be worthy.

But here’s what this snow week has been teaching me: God does some of His best work in the waiting. In the pauses. In the moments we wish would hurry up and pass. He uses the quiet to realign our hearts. He uses the stillness to soften us. He uses the downtime to remind us that our value does not come from how much we produce, but from who we belong to. It is when we are still and waiting, that He meets us right where we are.

Do I still feel restless? Absolutely. I am itching to get back into the classroom, back into routine, back into purpose-driven busyness. But I’m also learning to thank God for the interruption. For the forced rest. For the reminder that I am human. Limited, fragile, and deeply in need of His grace.

So today, as I sip this afternoon coffee and stare out at snow-covered streets, I’m choosing gratitude over frustration. I’m choosing trust over impatience. I’m choosing to believe that even this season, the slow, quiet, snowed-in one, is not wasted.

Because when God presses pause, it’s never without purpose.

And maybe, just maybe, this week wasn’t about being productive at all… maybe it was about being present.