Beating the Clock
My children are already suffering from the “all good things must end” malady that I often grieve from. It’s amazing how we can as Thoreau said, “launch (ourselves) on every wave, find your eternity in each moment” if it comes to beginnings, but endings always leave us grieving and breathless. We see it coming. As soon as May hits the calendar, my family becomes keenly aware the ticking of the school time clock. Friendships become more precious. Teachers are more than instructors, they are friends in our house. Now that the kids are old enough to really have the phone number and address memorized I have to remind and remind and remind them not to just hand it out to every class member. We wake with “stomach aches” or at the very least “feeling funny in the belly”. Adults and kids alike struggle. Diallo stresses as he dons a robe and watches seniors walk that aisle with classmates for the last time knowing which faces he will miss in the hallways. I am reminded of Robert Frost’s line “as dawn goes down to day, nothing gold can stay.” Change is life. Time passing is certain.
On the way to the last day of school this year we talked about freezing moments. Capturing seconds in our memories and enjoying that moment in time while it lasts. We talked about seeing the wind push clouds across the sky. Seeing the blades of grass dance like ocean waves. We talked about noticing details like a laugh or freckles. We talked about making this one second I am breathing in right now so special that the memory will last a lifetime.
And as usual Abbey asks the big question, “How, mama?”
Henry Van Dyke said that “Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity.” So it seems to me to beat the clock as in all things….love is the answer.
Thanks to the teachers and the friends who filled this year with so much joy for my family!
Filed under: Uncategorized, kids, life, purpose, relating well, relationships on June 5th, 2008
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