Originally published Monday, 21 May 2012.
Can you see it?
I was recently at the YMCA, talking to some of my special senior friends there. These women are so full of wisdom, wit, and energy! When I grow up some more, I want to be just like them.
One friend, who’s known my kids since they were little, asked how the winding down of the school year was going. She commented that it must be nice to look forward to the summer, but she knows that many moms also look forward to the end of summer to get the kids back out into a regular routine!
It’s true.
Yet it made me think about something:
There is always something, isn’t there?
Whether it’s in raising kids, or the seasons of marriage, or work, or life, there is always something. Something that could be a little better. When the kids are little, we think “It’ll be easier when they grow up.” When they’re in school, we think, “Can’t wait for summer!” When we’re single, “If only I could be married.” Sometimes when we’re married, “Remember the easy-going single days?!”
There is always something.
What’s the lesson here, Lord? Is there a lesson here?
I think the lesson is this: these lives we live, these days we traverse, are imperfect. Our families, our marriages, our jobs, our schools, our efforts, our selves: imperfect. In our hearts, we have stored-up a memory and a hope of something perfect. We’re always straining towards it.
But at least during our time on this earth, our lives are always marked by reaching towards it, yet never fully getting there.
There will always be something.
So what can we do? How can we stop instinctively noticing all the imperfections at hand? How can we stop “wishing” for the next best thing, the next best stage, the next best season, something new and better, something improved?
(Which, by the way, is the entire bent of the marketing industry: tapping into our natural yearning for something better and different. Don’t you think?)
I think the answer is to find the beauty and blessings right before us, today.
Maybe it looks something like this:
*We can slow down. We can be purposely grateful and say the words out loud: “Lord, isn’t this wonderful? Isn’t that beautiful? Look at how precious they are!”
*We can find the beauty “in any and every situation”, and hold it up with wonder, joy, and appreciation.
*We can understand – and accept – that the imperfect and broken will always be here with us.
*But we can also know this that doesn’t stop redemption, and beauty, from shining through each and every day.
Our purpose today is to find that beauty, treasure it, and share it.
For me today, that means that I can stop thinking about the challenges the school year brings, and how great it will be once summer finally gets here! And it also means that as the summer goes on, I don’t have to start anticipating how much easier life will be once everyone is back in school.
Instead, I can see the imperfect beauty of every day that is the hallmark of my life as a mom, as a wife, as a woman. I can embrace it, laugh and cry about it, and thank God for His hand over it.
I can hold on to today, just as it is.
So, how about you?
What can you do to slow down and hold on to the beauty before you today?
Warmly,
* * *
The best way we learn is from each other. You have a unique wisdom and insight that can truly bless others! So jump in and add your voice. I love to read what you share.
Dr. Ann is a Christian M.D., wife to her wonderful husband, and mom to a terrific gang of three. At The Marriage Checklist Ann blogs about marriage, motherhood, and more! She is syndicated on Crosswalk.com, and has been featured onBlogHer.com, MichaelHyatt.com, Fox news, and Good Morning America.
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Copyright Dr. Ann 2012
(photo credit: freedigitalphotos.net)
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