Summer Break. Windows open. Sounds of little voices fill our neighborhood. Sometimes giggling, sometimes crying….all nostalgic reminders of how quickly time moves.
It seems like only a few moments ago, our family was new to the neighborhood. We were the family with a baby and a preschooler. We were the over-decorated Halloween house, the side-walk chalked front side walk, the yard filled with various toys and ride along cars of various shapes and sizes. We were the red-eyed, spit-up stained clothed, stroller pushing, car seat adjusting, early to bed and far too early to rise parents who often blankly looked at each other muttering something like “will this ever get easier?”
Now…..our house is filled with children who resemble adults in almost every single way. They’re taller than us. Smarter than us (of course, they’re late teens/young adults…aren’t they all?). They eat more than us. Halloween and Christmas and…..all decorations have been dramatically reduced to an almost obligatory effort to try to still “look” like we are into the holidays. Side walk chalk has been replaced with a sea of textbooks and papers and online tests. The yard no longer has a spattering of toys, replaced rather with a room filled of sweaty, loud boys playing xbox or yelling at the TV while WWE is on to entertain them. Ride along cars are now replaced with ACTUAL CARS. No more strollers…no more car seats……and often we are in bed way before they are…..
In a moment, it all changes. And in the midst of it, I remember thinking it felt like eternity getting from day to day. The monotony has a way of altering perception of time. And looking back now, I simply cannot imagine where all the time went.
For those reading….if you have children….do you remember that feeling when you first held your child/ren, and thought these probably universal words “how could I ever love this child anymore than I do in this moment?”
You CAN! And you DO! I’ve always been amazed at how this works. Something so unquantifiable….yet tangible in some abstract sense. My only regret, I didn’t learn to really enjoy the monotony of the moments as I was in them when my kids were small. Somehow I so was looking for the next step, the next milestone, and now that my oldest is leaving for college in a few short months (OMG!) and my youngest is entering high school….my sentiments are best described in this wonderfully sappy song….
You will make mistakes. They might “hate” you for a moment or two. You will second and third and …guess yourself. You will one day, be in my space wondering how on earth 18 years has slipped through your fingers with you barely noticing it. If the grey hairs or impending wrinkles don’t prove to you that you are indeed older, and no longer the parent of a newborn or toddler….the towering “adult-ish” person living beside you will certainly utter something to let you know….he/she is ready to spread his/her wings….and no matter how much you want to respond back……
Know that you only have them for but a moment…..and may be if you read this and PAY ATTENTION…..you will slow down for a moment and enjoy the absolute best wandering journey around……
Peace…..
peaceinthejourney 