When 18 summers are over, this is what’s just beginning.
I’ve already used up all the 18 summers some posts suggest we “only” get with our children while they still officially are children.
I understand the heart and spirit behind these posts. I really do. They’re meant to make moms savor the time they have with their children while those children are living under their roof full-time. They’re meant to make us appreciate what we have now. They’re meant to make us soak in and savor.
And it is true that something shifts after that 18th summer, as it should. But when I look at this summer I’ve had with my young adults, I don’t mostly see what’s been used up; I see what’s been stored up. I don’t see what’s behind; I see what’s ahead. I don’t see what was; I see what is.
I don’t just see all I had. I see, gratefully, all I have.
I see a children who are also now my friends.
I see sweet memories.
I see relationships built over those 18 summers and all the falls and winters and springs in between them.
I see love that goes both ways.
I see trust and honesty.
I see what’s good now and good that’s still to come.
I see hope for the future.
Oh, mama, if you’re finishing out a first summer or an 18th summer or some summer in between, go ahead and squeeze the life out of it. But I encourage you not to do it in fear of what you are losing; do it in faith of what you are gaining.
Because when you get to that 19th summer and beyond, you’ll understand that there is no “only” about it.
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