“Back to life, back to reality…Back to those days of my hubby knowing he’s my #1”
Between my wife and myself we have 2 girls. I have Morgan from a previous marriage, and together we have Chandler. This past Sunday was a HUGE milestone for my wife and I because our youngest daughter Chandler Grace turned 1 year old. I’m sure if you’re a mother, you remember your first child’s first birthday more than all others; and my wife was no different. Chandler's birthday was the party of all parties, and my wife has spent the past 6 weeks preparing for this event like no other. One of the many things I love about Heather is that she is a real “do it yourself” kinda gal. If she see’s something in a magazine or on Pinterest she can create the exact same thing in no time. She hammers, she saws, she cuts, she sews and she hot glues just about anything she can get her hands on.
By the time last Monday came around she had everything nailed down to the last detail. And as always, she had her perfectly planned schedule shaded in different colors so she was certain not to miss a thing. She worked from dusk til’ dawn (literally) juggling our baby and Morgan, cleaning, cooking and decorating and by the time Friday hit, and her entire family arrived from out of town everything was in place for the perfect first birthday party.
I took a back seat for the past month and a half, and honestly I did not mind one bit. My wife has treated me like a king since the day we met, and I have every reason to let her have this time and support her efforts in this endeavor. As Sunday morning approached I sat back and watched in awe at my wife, and how she balanced the set up of the party, entertaining guests, herding small children and making everyone feel welcome. This dance went on for the entire party. Of course everyone had nothing but great things to say about the entire event, and when it was all winding down I began to notice a change in my wife’s behavior. At first it was subtle, but by the time the last guest left there was clearly something wrong with Heather.
Since the party was held at the Botanical Gardens, we decided to take a stroll through the park… Just the 4 of us. As I glanced over at Heather her eyes were filled up with tears. I just couldn’t understand it. Here we were…my wife had just pulled off the party of a lifetime, everyone had a blast and we were walking as a family through these beautiful gardens and she was upset. What could possibly be wrong with this moment?
Here’s what was wrong…the past 365 days had blown by, and she realized that we only had 17 more of those left before Chandler was grown and out of our home. Heather had been so busy with the planning of this party that she never had time to stop and think about the fact her first born child JUST TURNED ONE! Isn’t that just like the way we go through life most of the time. We look forward to the next “big thing.” We plan for it, we prepare for it and we anticipate it with so much excitement. Then it just comes and goes in a blink of an eye. Well here is my take away from this…it’s not all about the event, or the next big thing…it’s about the journey, and the experience of getting there. Sure, Chandler’s party was fun…Honestly it was pretty amazing. But ultimately it was a small wrinkle of time. On the flip side of that the past year with our little gift has been a true blessing. She is healthy, happy and so much fun to be around. In other words…It’s about the journey, not the destination.
I want to encourage you to make sure you are not focusing on the destination more than you are the journey. Make sure you are engaging yourself everyday in the little things, and investing in those tiny, seemingly insignificant moments because those are the things you will carry with you for a lifetime. Those are the things that you will remember, and you will hold closer than all others.
