I am filled with wonder at the realization that I am always eager with anticipation as a new season approaches. The weeks of planning for vacations, play dates and ways for our children to burn off their energy without burning up are giving way to routine, packing school lunches and dreaming of cooler weather. Summer was a glorious break from the routine of the school year, but there is something in our bodies that feels settled in the predictability of normal life. Each season always gives way to another season.
When I was round and aching, belly full of each of my growing babies, I couldn’t wait to finally give birth and begin the next chapter with that sweet little babe in tow. Once that fragile little creature was in my arms, I dreamed of less fragile days filled with smiles and milestones and the sounds of little giggles. Then those toddlers fill diapers with terrible things and the future without diaper bags and nap schedules seems absolutely wonderful. At some point, you start to realize that all of those exhausting nights and mundane days are but a momentary affliction. That actually, those long nights are but a brief part of our days of mothering; there are far more days on the other side of the sleepless nights than you ever imagined.
As I sit in the reality that our family is complete, there is no future where I will carry another life, no more children to teach to use the toilet and the future is filled with training our children for the rest of their lives… I wonder what I would say to that brand new mom as she struggled and wept. I think it would be something like, “this too shall pass, and some day you will cherish all the glorious tribulation of your journey”. I would ask her, “how might you presence yourself each and every day to appreciate this season, because seasons always change?”
What is one thing you can do today to really appreciate this season of your mothering? This season will pass, mama. Some day soon, it will live on simply as a memory. So hold their little hands, dance with them to songs of delight, and kiss their delicious little cheeks. Tell your son or daughter that you delight in being their mama and you delight in them. And remind yourself it might be the last time you ever get to do this. The last time you’ll wake up to their newborn cries. The last dirty diaper. It might be the last time they need you to scratch their back to sleep. The last time they’ll sleep on your chest.
When we change our mindset from ‘have to’ to ‘get to’, the way we see the world changes. What do you get to do today? Do you get to make your beautiful family a delicious breakfast, lunch, or dinner? Do you get to be faithful to loving this little baby by changing all these diapers? Do you get to slow down and drink that cup of coffee and really savor the way the sun shines through the windows of those early mornings?
Seasons always change. Summer to fall, fall to winter and winter to spring. The sun will rise each day a little differently. And slowly, incrementally, it will give way to new patterns and new seasons. Embrace today in all its glorious challenges, joy and beauty, because tomorrow will be different, even if just a little. Before you know it, you will be in a completely different season looking back, delighting in those dark, quiet nights. Seasons always change.