Holy Hygge - Episode 3
If you listened to the brief introduction of The Creative Table podcast you might remember me saying that the episodes would be a mix of my conversations with others as well as me simply speaking from my heart about what I have been learning or my favorite things or just life in general. Well, this is the first of one of those ‘solo’ episodes. And I simply want to spend a brief time talking about something that I have been learning over the past few years.
Have you heard the term, Hygge (hoo gah)? It is a word, term and lifestyle that hit the states hard a few years ago. It has been a part of the Danish and Norwegian culture for a long, long time. You have probably seen the word and thought to yourself, “I don’t even know how to pronounce that, much less try to figure out what it means!” I know that was my first response. But I am a collector of words and so I needed to know what it was.
What it is because a step into deeper growth of spiritual practices for me. In short, hygge actually means to give comfort. The living of hygge is around coziness, hospitality, a form of togetherness and a blessed atmosphere. In this living of hygge there is a slowness, an intentional thought behind each action or inaction. It is leaning into the slow rhythmic pace of life – which is so counter intuitive to this crazed American way of living – rushing through days, nights, to-do lists, appointments, Zoom calls, meals, conversations, etc.
Hygge – to slow down and to give comfort. Savor food and drink. Create an environment for a state of well-being. Breathe. Sign me up!
There is much more that you can read about hygge – but I believe that Christ live a life if hygge before it was even a word or pace of life. He lived hospitality and comfort of others. He came to give eternal well-being. It doesn’t get much more comforting than that.
OK, back to how this became a part of my world. 2 years ago, the year following the death of our son, I found myself still existing in this frentitic pace of going, going and going some more. And I was about to crash…Big Time. I was living in my normal people-pleasing state of mind and ignoring my own health – both physical and mental. I would wake up in a panic to hurry and get ready to get to work because I didn’t want to disappoint anyone if I were late. Instead of simply adjusting my hours (which I have the luxury of doing) and setting a better pace. Mind you, I was trying to embrace this hygge lifestyle – candles, soft music, cozy blankets, good food, hostessing nice dinners. But that was not living a life to give comfort. And if I’m honest, if was living a life that was pride-filled.
Enter a good, solid season of anxiety. Nothing to turn your pseudo-controlled world on its head than fighting to catch your breath and swimming in a sea of grief and panic to bring you to your knees and beg for help. Thanks to lots of prayer, a great PTSD counselor, medication (yes, that is ok) and friends who spoke truth, I was able to reset and manage my anxiety in a healthy way. In that process I also began co-facilitating a leadership group over a period of 9 months. So much good came from that 9 months (so much so that I will be leading another group this year), but by far was my introduction to the book, Sacred Rhythms by Ruth Hailey Barton. I had read about spiritual disciplines in Brother Lawrence’s writings, but Sacred Rhythms was different. And it has spoken to me in deep, life-changing ways.
In learning how to enter into the practice of certain rhythms, I have found myself drawing closer to God. I have also embraced hygge in the form of slowing my pace, especially in the morning. I know there are some of you listening who believe that 5 o’clock only comes once on the clock - and it is not a.m. However, I am up shortly before or shortly after 5am most mornings. There is a sweetness to the morning hours when the sun is rising. Here in the desert, being outside when it is coming up over the mountains is simply the best. During the weekdays, after the Rocket Scientist leave, I light candles, start the coffee pot, and head out front to water plants and feed the birds. I try to move very slow in these tasks, because the reality is there is absolutely no reason to rush through them. If I rush, I miss the hummingbirds fluttering around my head seeking to their morning energy from the feeders. If I hurry through these rituals, I can easily miss new buds on the flowers or a new leaf on the plumeria. It allows me time to take deep breathes, to whisper my thanks to God for all he provides it sets the pace for my day. Upon entering the house I feed the dog, steam my cream and make froth for the coffee and I am able to curl up under a blanket, read the Word, and actually sip and taste my coffee instead of chug it and burn my tongue.
Jesus talks about our pace, and what he can provide if we allow him. In Matthew 11:28-30 Christ says, “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”
That slow pace is was where I found I actually could sit in the stillness and hear God…not simply throw my daily prayer requests at him and run to the next item on the list. In the slowness, I find I can actually see where anxiety triggers might be beginning to show up and seek to move to the ways I have learned to manages those moments (as I am recording this I am actually walking through a season of heightened anxiety, and I trust God to set the daily pace so I am able to manage the symptoms)
Don’t get me wrong – I’m still learning. I hope I am always learning these practices. But I pray I continue to seek out that slow pace not simply in the mornings, but all day long. I pray that the art of living hygge becomes fully woven into these spiritual practices – that I learn to embrace a place of comfort for my soul and mind, and also to walk in a spirit of comfort for those I come in contact with.
I want to share another book that has become very important in learning these rhythms. That book is called Every Moment Holy and it is a book of liturgies. I know some of you heard the word liturgy and it conjured up maybe some not so good memories. I pray you will reconsider. These liturgical readings and moments have been honey to my heart and God has used them to create moments of deep conversation with Him. They have set creative days up for me in ways that I am blown away in awe over.
I hope that this episode, while short, brought you a little inspiration and lift to your day. I hope that you are able to see God in the slower pace of life. I pray that you are able to know what it means to walk in a life of Jesus hygge – of comfort and care. And until next time, I pray that today, you will find a creative way to make someone smile.
