As I write this I am listening to the sound of rain pelting down and wind whipping through the trees and I am grateful for many things. The first is for the rain. We have been so dry this year–only about 35 percent of our normal precipitation for this time of year. So this rain is heavenly. Of course it was less heavenly when I was driving on the highway through a steady downpour. What was normally an hour drive up to school to pick my daughter up for the weekend took about an hour and a half–coming and going through a driving (no pun intended) rain. On my way up to the University traffic had slowed to a crawl. I couldn’t figure out what had happened until I drove by an overturned vehicle that had clearly gone up an embankment and flipped onto it’s top. At 3 p.m. it was as dark as dusk, and by the time we were actually headed back it was darker and rainier still. So I am also grateful for traveling mercies today, for safe travel for the 100-mile round trip.
It has been a good week for my daughter Michal. She is learning about the outcome of some of her graduate school applications–she’s applied to five schools to study toward a masters degree in student affairs/higher education. This week she’s received two acceptances so far and is both excited and probably a little scared. I guess I am too: excited to watch her joyful enthusiasm as she learns she’s been accepted to two of her “top choice” schools, and a little sad at the prospect of her moving away for school. Part of me recognizes the inevitability of this progression and really am preparing to let go. Another part of me is screaming, “Wait! It can’t be time already is it?” It reminds me of a verse from a song I wrote titled, “Letting Go.”
I watch my children and I see how fast they grow. Each day brings me closer to the time I’ve got to let ’em go. But until then I hug them and I bless them and I love them and I let them know That I’ll hold on tight and won’t let go.I am grateful for another day, and for another week that went by so fast it’s amazing. We’re through three weeks of 2012 already and I feel like time is flying by. It has been a strangely tiring week. My early morning waking, while productive in some ways (I’ve done some meditating, thinking, writing), it has also meant less sleep and more intense mental activity. It’s been a good week for thinking and reflecting and writing, some of it related to my ongoing exploration of my calling/life purpose. These ideas have been percolating and bubbling along with a great deal of energy since my participation in the daylong retreat called, “Dream, Believe, and Soar” that focused our attention on discovering our life purpose. Some pieces of the puzzle are now on the table, I simply need to see where they fit. So all of this rumination has been good. My hope is that some of the fruits of all this reflection will begin showing soon as I put things together. We shall see. Meanwhile, let it rain.
© M. T. Chamblee, 2012
