Happy New Year!! I have made it back. The letters are written and mostly sent, the decorations are back in their boxes, and warm weather is all around. The holidays are over. We had a nice time visiting family and friends. We even left the children with their grandparents for about a week while my husband and I went to a retreat in Tennessee. At the retreat I was reminded of an intriguing Bible verse I read last year. "Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life..." 1 Thes 4:11. I remember asking my husband if that would be ok. Could we live a quiet life and can that really be an ambition? It certainly seems to be unambitious in the American way of thinking. Would it be ok if we quietly live our lives here in Eastern Carolina, not making waves or crashing onto the scene somewhere? Can we retire here someday with nothing more to add to our resume than what is there already? Can that quiet life be achieved on the daily basis? We are not back a week yet, and already it is "Let me write that on my calendar. No, I am already booked." The kids have basketball, 4-H, and co-op classes. Mom has committee meetings. Dad has committments. The frantic pace grabs you almost unaware and you are running before you have your shoes tied. Now I know that the writer of Thessalonians wasn't talking about fame or busy schedules, but God did set a standard in declaring a Sabbath rest. So it is my goal this year to be quieter, to say less and listen more, to schedule less and relax more. I am making it my ambition to lead a quiet life.