this girl’s eye view

seasons of life… February 22, 2010

my myles and his best friend aniyah

Spring blossomed, summer beamed, fall harvested its way in and winter descended and blew in as it had never done before.  things were happening and all in life looked as though it was falling apart, never to return to a place of wholeness again.  the winter grew intense and ominous.  it felt as if danger lay in wait as the people trudged their way through the snow drifts and high winds.  however, the people kept their feet moving.  as laborious as it may have been, they never stopped moving their feet.  as this rough season of life grew more and more intense, and the winter storms grew heavier and more scary than ever before, yet and still, the people kept moving forward.   

it looked as if the intensity of the harsh wintery blizzard would bury them all.  they were never overtaken by the storms behind them and it looked as if they were walking right into more uncertain times ahead of them.  the people did not change course, nor did they fret the uncertainty ahead of them because God Is With Them…always.

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you see, these two little people pictured above, with vibrant personalities, have no idea how God’s miracle(s) are playing out in their families. they have no idea the heartaches of their families as theygrieve life’s happenings and how wondrously they will emerge into something even more fantastic, even more beautiful, even more awesome than  they or i can ever imagine.

amazingly enough, providence steps in and takes care of what is needed, when it is needed.  they have yet to go “without”.  in fact, with some creative maneuvering and turning lemons into a lemonade feast, their parents have made sure that these two little ones continue to know the joys of childhood. 

 side note: generally speaking, i do not believe in being excessive.  i’m mostly practical.  i love throwing a really fun party on a budget.  i love when my favorite foods are on sale (especially because i can be persnickity about what i buy and feed my family).  i love making the best of a good sale.  i’ve had so much fun throwing my myles’ birthday blowouts on a shoestring budget.  combining my resources and some purchased items, i’ve been able to create some very memorable times for him and his friends. sometimes people assume that i’ve spent lots of cash stuff when frankly, i just enjoy being able to “make things happen” on the cheap, just to see if i can do it.

last summer, as my family and i were in the midst of experiencing difficulties from financial to emotional to spiritual to familial to” you name it”, i was determined no to let misery rule the day.  though, it may be odd to some people, when life is tough, i somehow still have push, drive, ambition, joy somewhere inside of me that keeps me moving forward, regardless. 

so, oftentimes, i make lists of things that i want to do and last summer was no different.  as i made my page long list of summer activities, i didn’t think twice that it would not happen.  in fact, i just assumed that all would work out for just about every single item.  i knew that i would not be going to the ATLANTIS  for summer vacation.  sigh.  but nonetheless, our summer was full of of rocking good times.  and yes, i was quite proud of myself and my six-year-old myles for not giving in to the culture of “i want, i want, i want”.  hey, i’m not saying that we don’t give in to it at times, BUT, there is a major limit to it (i think:)).  anyhoo, so went the fall and winter, full of joyous occasions in the midst of life’s trials.

my point in saying all of this is that i would love for my little myles to experience life in total and utter perfection.  whatever that may mean in my opinion or conjured up imagination.  ‘cuz you know, we all have in mind what a perfect childhood would be for our kids, right?  anyhoo,  that has yet to happen…perfection, that is.  unfortunately, he does know some of life’s sadness.  he seriously misses his sister, he has seen his mom and dad at odds and he has seen his family go through financial highs and lows.  we’ve done our best to keep him shielded, but as you know, kids pick up on much more than we sometimes give them credit for. 

i know that life is going to happen and sometimes in a way that we don’t ever wish.  however, i make sure that i pray for my precious boy and pray with him.  i explain and try to drill into him that our reliance should ultimately be on God.  as i grow, it is important for me to model how to healthily navigate my way through life.  i make sure that he knows that mommy and daddy do not have a magic bank card that has no end to what it can purchase.  this last fact caused him to pray really hard one night for a “must have” train that he wanted.  not that i’m laughing at him, but that was kind of funny. it was only funny because he was in a panic realizing the bank card was not endless. but i digress…

sooooo, as we continue to move through this wintry season of life, i must say that i am seeing the miracles of God on a daily basis.  and guess what folks, the changes and miracles of life have thankfully, not been financial.  this may sound strange to some people, but when you have experienced life’s wintry storms, you become and are quite thankful that God Is With You.  especially when you know in your heart, that you’re going to come out the other side of it okay.  most times, with your feelings,  the words – “God With Us” does not seem or feel so apparent.  and yes, God does understand that we will have icky ugly feelings when life is crazy.  yet, in our heart of hearts and deep down insde, we must know that He is with us.

as we now encounter and embrace life in a new way and with new things to come, i will remember that God is With Me, no matter what or how life’s seasons come.

(pictured above) as you see these four little precious hands holding up the sign that reads, “God With Us”, little do they know that that is my prayer for them to keep those words in their hearts.  they do know that God With Us is also the meaning of one of the names of Jesus – Emmanuel.  they were in attendance at a christmas service when this picture was taken.  we attend willow creek’s christmas service every year and there is always something fun and creative and whimsical and spiritual that happens.  this past christmas’ service was no different.  and this year myles was old enough to understand some of the stories that he heard and how God was with the people throughout their situations.  one day, he’ll have his own story to tell.

these two little ones holding the sign will one day read this story and remember how they were safely carried through a very very blizzardy season of life because…God Is With Them, Always!

until next time,

c ya