Margins… those beautiful white spaces at the edge of a crisp new piece of notebook paper. When I was in elementary school this space was reserved for comments by a teacher- sometimes in blue and others times in fire engine red. When taking notes in high school, these sacred spaces became prime territory for daydreams and doodles. Writing papers in college English classes, these subtle spaces became depositories for quotes, references, and footnote protocol.

In my 50’s, margin is so much more. It’s the space I leave in my life for random events, people, or places. It has taken almost 2 1/2 decades to learn how to leave the margin free.  I am still learning.  Lately I have found myself filling up the margin of my life with Busy. Good busy- but Busy all the same. I fill up my datebook hoping that the void I am feeling in my life will also be shored up. I wonder at the same time if Busy looks so inviting because it enables me to push my dreams and desires to the back of the shelf.  If Busy lives in my margin, there is no time to write or to simply sit with Jesus and be still. If my margin is filled with people pleasing and to-do lists that can never really be “checked off, ” then there is no need to take a risk and try something NEW.  If Busy takes permanent residence in my margin, I don’t have time to look in the mirror and wonder, “Who is this woman looking back at me?”

So here’s to Margin… to leaving some space to breathe- not quick, shallow breaths- but deep intentional breaths. Leaving a space in the schedule, the checkbook, and in my heart. I need to take a closer look at the woman in the mirror. I need to take a risk, jump into a messy puddle, roll my car window down. Because sometimes the very best surprises are found in the margins.

“My parents, and librarians along the way, taught me about the space between words; about the Margins, where so many juicy moments of life and spirit and friendship could be found. In a library, you could find miracles and truth and you might find something that would make you laugh so hard that you get shushed, in the friendliest way.”

– Anne Lamott