The Easy Moments
When the kids were really small I would notice, every once in a while, that the house was completely quiet. Everyone was accounted for and playing well. No one was crying or clamoring for my attention. It was usually only a few moments, but I would soak those moments in deeply and think, "Ah, for just a few minutes there's quiet and peace and stillness. These are the easy moments." I needed those little breaks when life was so intense and all-consuming. Finding them was always unexpected. They dot all of my memories of having small children, scattered throughout the years like little oases and places to refresh before charging back into life at full tilt.
Just the other day, as I sat surrounded by silence after a morning with Micah, I realized I was in another of those moments. I had been in one of them, actually, for several days. In fact, I had begun to see a pattern. There were still the full-tilt, intense moments for our family--sometimes parenting moments, sometimes because of responsibilities outside of our home. But more and more, the moments were easy. Calm, quiet, requiring just a little less of all of me. Not that I wasn't giving my best, but either their needs had changed or I had grown to better meet them. The little oases in my memories have become entire islands, stretching out like the most luxurious places I've ever seen. My oases used to be places for just me, but now they're places for Micah too. And even the kids. Maybe, just maybe, this season of parenting is just--I'm afraid to say it!-- easier.
Cora started school this year and she loves her half days of preschool. The boys are full-swing into their school days and loving the things they're learning and the time with their friends (and they have good friends!). Micah's working part-time as a substitute teacher and finishing schooling to become a teacher, but his schedule is nothing if not flexible. And night shift. Oh, that shift I've loved and hated! Somehow it doesn't feel like a monster that needs to be tamed anymore. My life doesn't feel like a recovery room--I'm living, even thriving, in spite of this crazy shift. Maybe it is the shift in our lifestyle that makes the days so much easier, I don't know.
I know one thing for sure. I never let my five easy moments pass when they were little without stopping, taking a deep breath, and letting the silence and peace wash over me. If these moments are easy--regardless of the reason--I'm determined to do the same. I'm holding onto them for as long as they last. The storms will return, and life will be full-tilt again before we know it. I'll enjoy every one of the easy moments and be thankful for the reprieve. I'm going to sit here on my little island oasis and soak it up!
Just the other day, as I sat surrounded by silence after a morning with Micah, I realized I was in another of those moments. I had been in one of them, actually, for several days. In fact, I had begun to see a pattern. There were still the full-tilt, intense moments for our family--sometimes parenting moments, sometimes because of responsibilities outside of our home. But more and more, the moments were easy. Calm, quiet, requiring just a little less of all of me. Not that I wasn't giving my best, but either their needs had changed or I had grown to better meet them. The little oases in my memories have become entire islands, stretching out like the most luxurious places I've ever seen. My oases used to be places for just me, but now they're places for Micah too. And even the kids. Maybe, just maybe, this season of parenting is just--I'm afraid to say it!-- easier.
Cora started school this year and she loves her half days of preschool. The boys are full-swing into their school days and loving the things they're learning and the time with their friends (and they have good friends!). Micah's working part-time as a substitute teacher and finishing schooling to become a teacher, but his schedule is nothing if not flexible. And night shift. Oh, that shift I've loved and hated! Somehow it doesn't feel like a monster that needs to be tamed anymore. My life doesn't feel like a recovery room--I'm living, even thriving, in spite of this crazy shift. Maybe it is the shift in our lifestyle that makes the days so much easier, I don't know.
I know one thing for sure. I never let my five easy moments pass when they were little without stopping, taking a deep breath, and letting the silence and peace wash over me. If these moments are easy--regardless of the reason--I'm determined to do the same. I'm holding onto them for as long as they last. The storms will return, and life will be full-tilt again before we know it. I'll enjoy every one of the easy moments and be thankful for the reprieve. I'm going to sit here on my little island oasis and soak it up!
