The Power of Space

Playing in Logan Canyon, Summer 2010

I spent my childhood exploring and discovering. Living on a small street just outside of Preston, Idaho (population 3710 at the time) had many benefits -- the greatest may have been the space. We had the space of a big yard -- for softball games, jumping in piles of maple leaves, and playing hide and go seek. The space of our neighborhood -- picnicking along the side of the road, wading through the tiny stream down the street, and exploring the swamp on the hill behind our house. In the winter we had the space to build igloos in the back yard, go sledding on the big hill and snowmobile in the field next to our house (sometimes with a sled attached behind). And my parents knew how to give us space too. We had room to discover and learn and grow.

I try to give my kids that kind of space. We don't have the physical space I had as a child, but I work hard giving them the opportunity to feel the joy of exploration, the excitement of discovery, the power of learning, and the pride of growth.

There is power and opportunity when we put space into our lives. When our homes our stuffed with things, we spend our time taking care of that stuff, our money buying all of the stuff, and our energy worrying about it. When we create a little space in our homes we have more time, more money and more energy (not to mention a little room for the stuff we really do need).

When our schedules are full we spend our time and energy running from place to place. When we create space we have time for rest and rejuvenation, energy for the people and projects that energize us, and quiet to stop and listen and reflect.

We can put space into our routines -- giving us time to look at the sunset, space into our work day - allowing a few minutes to just breathe, and space in our hearts -- giving us the opportunity to explore, discover, and to love life anew.