Time | Journey to Philbrook Museum of Art

I’ve heard the saying often. It’s not just about the destination. It’s about the journey. I believe that each day we can see some new life lesson that gives us a clearer picture of our purpose. On this particular day, I was reminded of a gift that I can be more intentional about giving to others.

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While adventuring in Europe for the first six months of 2020, I didn’t take for granted the amazing places we were getting to see and the experiences we were having. I was in awe of its history and beauty. Europe had so much to offer people who came from far off places. I often told myself that when we got home, I wanted to explore our state country and neighborhood. There is something quite special about traveling to new places, even if they are right around the corner from where you live.

One of the first places we visited was the Philbrook Art Museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Philbrook has a beautiful selection of European, African, American, Native American, and contemporary art. It also has a historical gallery that shares the history of the museum. My favorite piece of art is the log cabin in the garden made from reclaimed wood, stained glass, books, and cloth. The inside is magical!

Whether you are at the Louvre in Paris or a small Main Street gallery, something special happens when you see the creativity that other people share. The combinations of color, materials, and techniques intertwined with history and culture is such a gift to experience. This definitely rang true during our trip to Philbrook.

The art and creativity extends into the surrounding landscape. The museum has a beautiful garden that was in full bloom along with acres of land with paths, sculptures, and other pieces of art along the way. There were places for kids to run freely and experience nature.

The Philbrook provided a scavenger hunt for kids, a really cool swing from a tree, and rakes for a leaf pile to jump into. The grounds were welcoming to kids in a way that made you feel like you were in your own beautiful backyard. They even gave the kids a cool button for finishing the scavenger hunt. My kids loved this place!

As we drove home, I was reflecting on what makes a day like this so special. There are many things that could answer that question, but the word that kept coming to my mind was time.

Time. And more specifically, uninterrupted time. Once we left home and got on the road, time was not an issue. We had no where to be, no deadlines, no rushing back for one thing or another. Why did this make a difference? We had time to play and time to explore. We had time to backtrack as we completed the scavenger hunt. We had time to swing and have a lingering picnic. We had time to see all the art. There was no watching the clock and no rushing through the rooms of art so that we could get to our next appointment.

What a gift that was to me. And I think it was a gift to my kids. I was able to play and explore with them and watch how they smiled and laughed as they swung from the tree and jumped in the leaves. They were able to enjoy it without me rushing them so that we could be at our next destination.

We do have seasons where our family’s schedule is pretty full. But right now we’re not in a rush, without a rigid schedule we so often had to follow. I think it’s good for us. Planning is good. Having responsibilities and jobs and other commitments are good, but right now, we’re enjoying the extra time and space.

I’ve heard of giving others the gift of availability. When our schedules have space, we can give that gift to others. We can give that gift to our kids who want to play with us. We can give it to our spouse who needs our listening ear. We can give it to the friend who needs a shoulder to cry on. We can give it to the elderly person who needs help finding their car in the parking lot.

When our plates are full and our schedules packed tight, we can easily miss out on those opportunities. When we leave space, we are able to say yes to giving that gift of availability. And in turn we’re given the gift of getting to be there for someone who needs us.

Now, we can’t be available for everything that comes our way, but planning to have some space within our schedule does allow us to say yes to a few things that otherwise we might have missed.

This is what we were able to do on our day at Philbrook. This adventure to visit a new place turned into a day that reminded me that I need more days like this. I need more days with space. Space to serve others in need. Space to be available for the ones I love. Space to enjoy the little moments without rushing. Space to just be.

There was space today.

I will plan for that more often.