As homemakers, our work is directed towards making home a safe haven. To foster peace in our homes, we need to learn the art of ordering and finding beauty in simplicity. But first, a haven must be created in our hearts for He who is peace.
A haven from the storm
The world is complicated, and sometimes I want to escape. Most days, as a family, we find refuge in morning Mass and weekly adoration. On those days, I surrender all my works, joys, and sufferings to the Lord at the altar. And I am restored, for He is my haven.
There’s a place near the river where I go to unplug and rest my sometimes-weary soul, where I can slow down and catch my breath. While I sink my toes into the warm sand, I enjoy watching my children splash in the water. I notice the little sailing boats tethered to the shore by their anchors. They are tossed about and take refuge in the bay that is their haven and mine.
Although it is an honour to be a wife and a mother, at times the busyness of it all feels like I am one of those tossed and turned little boats just trying to stay afloat. There are days I cannot get to church or the bay because illness or life gets in the way. So we stay home, and this is OK, since our home is my haven.
Seeing the beauty in front of me
According to the Cambridge Dictionary, “haven” means a peaceful or safe place. St. Teresa of Calcutta said that peace and love must begin at home for the world to change. As a wife and mother, I must make our home safe for my husband, children, and myself.
We’ve owned and rented numerous houses over the years. And although I have been industrious inside and outside our houses, they haven’t always been my haven. My discontent has been a massive barrier in the past. I was sometimes focused on what I did not have (like a house in the country), thus missing the beauty right in front of me.
Seeing the beauty in the simple things has been as challenging for me as keeping order in my home. This is because I am not naturally grateful or tidy. My orderly house means nothing if my heart is in disarray. Over the years, I have found that peace is cultivated when order is established. With order comes peace, with peace comes rest, with rest comes a haven.
My orderly house means nothing if my heart is in disarray. Peace is cultivated when order is established. With order comes peace, with peace comes rest, with rest comes a haven.
Practising the art of ordering
To help with order in my house, I practise the art of frequently decluttering. And for order in my heart, I practise daily prayers to the Holy Spirit. Both practises benefit my well-being, which is critical to making my home a haven.
This does not mean my haven has made life easier or without struggle. The faded fabric bunting swings in the breeze as I think about how I have sometimes struggled with the fact that my haven is not exactly how I want it to be. Last spring, a storm in a single night destroyed my greenhouse that took a whole year to save for and days of work to build. Then, the seedlings I had propagated in previous months were recently destroyed this summer by Jemima Puddle Duck and her three waddling friends. So…we rebuild and we replant and we start again to be sanctified in our hidden life in this haven – all the while, holding in tension over the fact that this earthly haven is not my final home.
After all, if Our Lady, the spouse of The Holy Spirit, had her heart pierced – do I expect any less to make it to Heaven? Our houses have not become havens without effort, and having a haven has not replaced my desire for Heaven. Being a haven, my house has given me a daily place of refuge: refuge to gather strength for what comes next, to cultivate love, to feel safe, and restore my well-being.
In order for my house to truly become a haven, I need to ask Our Lord each moment of life to climb aboard and calm the depths of my heart, for He is my anchor, and it is through Him that one day I hope to be carried safely home to Heaven.
4 Responses
Oh Leigh! All this imagery has made me feel a little closer to heaven.
Beautiful how you encourage us to be thankful for our earthly haven while at the same time yearning for Heaven.
Thank you for your beautiful words. You are very inspiring.