Oh, dear friends, thank you for your warm and loving response to last night's post. I am so grateful for your empathy, your own stories, you encouragement, your advice. I feel so lifted up, and I hope you all do, too. A burden shared really is a burden lessened.

My husband's school is doing their school musical right now (right after marching band season! Ack! More nights away!) They are doing "Fiddler on the Roof", and today he came home from their "tech rehearsal" whistling some of the tunes. It made me think of this Sabbath scene in the movie, one of my favorite movies scenes ever. Though I don't share this faith or these rituals, this image of a family celebrating a weekly tradition (here, so simple: a loaf of braided bread, candles, prayers -- and yet, so profound, as the celebration of the Jewish sabbath is) and praying for their hopes for their children is one that I treasure.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnaZqHy2ZHE?rel=0]

It has me thinking tonight of the small rituals we have as a family, and how there is still more I'd like to incorporate in the rhythm of our days and weeks to set aside as sacred -- not just in the spiritual/religious sense, but also in terms of the sacredness of our life as a family right now. I have a sense that time with these young ones under our roof is fleeting and to be treasured, and I would like to communicate that to them even more in our family life.

I'm wondering, what small traditions are most valuable to your families, and what little rituals have you valued as your children have grown?

uncommon grace