Where are you, Springtime?

Gloomy, dreary days, of late, have me pining away for the warm beauty of sunny springtime days.  Many of the trees in our area are already budding... which makes me realize just what a mild winter we have had.  It also makes me think that another frost is probably imminent.  How's that for optimism?

My son who is a senior this year has wrapped up his basketball season, and so the end of high school is in sight for him.  After 20-plus years of homeschooling - first three babies and then two - we will now be down to one.  It's really hard for me to believe.  I call them babies because... well... isn't that how every mother thinks of her children?  They will always be my babies, no matter how old they are.  (Think "Love You Forever" by Robert Munsch). They are each such immense blessings and in such different ways.  It has been amazing to see them sprout their wings and begin to fly.

The oldest is soaring and finding his place in the world with many irons in the fire at the moment... working two jobs and taking college classes from two different institutions, simultaneously.  And, all of this on top of his non-paying, at the moment, (but highly satisfying to him) work in the field of SEC sports media.  He is constantly meeting with someone or doing work for someone in the media... actually spent the morning at a local radio station... and soaking in as much knowledge as he can on his way to who knows where... (God does!)

There are so many "i's" left to dot and "t's" left to cross with middle son that I hardly know where to start.  I am so proud of him, yet not quite ready for him to be at that age.  But, ready or not, here graduation comes.  The cap and gown are sized up, and the invitations are ordered.  He is the one who delights in seeing how many different ways he can bring a smile to his mother's face.  What a gift.  It's when I think of things like that, that I truly understand the very familiar Biblical line, "but Mary treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart."

And then there's my daughter... soon to be old enough for a driver's permit... and I just think, "Where did the time go?"  I am not the first to feel this way, nor will I be the last.  But, life is marching on whether I like it or not. As you can see from the pictures below taken nearly 10 years ago, she's always had a flair for the dramatic.  So, I cannot wait to see what God has in store for her.

And so, on this gloomy, not-yet-spring day, I am thankful.  I am treasuring.  I am pondering.  And I am knowing that God is good and that He is the Giver of all these good gifts.