Rachel's Secret

Just over a week ago, we decided as a family that we would not watch tv or play video games during the week. So, from Sunday afternoon, until Friday afternoon, the tv is off. The wii is off. No games are played on phones or iPad.

IT HAS BEEN GREAT !

I don't know why we haven't done it before. When we were first married we got rid of our tv entirely. We didn't have a tv for a few years and I loved it. Now, I'm happy to have a tv in the house. It's nice sometimes to sit down and watch a movie, or some tv. It's fun to play video games with the kids on occasion. But, it can get out of control ... and quickly.

This first week and a bit has been so nice. The house has a different feel to it. The kids have different attitudes. I have different priorities. Nothing feels as rushed. There's more time ... even though there isn't, really. We spend more time reading. More time talking. It's easier to get up in the morning to exercise. And this is strange, but I always feel more rested if I haven't watched tv before bed. I don't know why. I can go to bed at the same time, but if I have watched tv I feel more tired in the morning. Weird. And maybe just me ...

Anyway ... Rachel's Secret by BJ Hoff. I picked it up off the library shelf last week ... because it had an Amish woman on the cover. It's no secret that I am fascinated by the Amish and their way of life. I couldn't live it. Not by a long shot, but I am drawn to simplicity. I think there are things that can be learned, not just from the Amish, but from many different people groups.

I enjoyed this book. It was an easy read in the way that it was written. It was a not so easy read in that it tells a story of hardship. Of struggle. Set in the days of the Underground Railroad, it's a collision of lives that are very different. It's a story of compassion, of forgiveness, of love.

It's the first in a series. I've sent the library my request for book two  ...