Beautiful picture

I recently saw this video, and was struck by the beauty depicted in the relationship between this father and son.

This picture beautifully captures what we are called to as parents. To stand with our children in those defining moments. To be present with them in the midst of loss and disappointment. To give them a place to fail with security.

http://youtu.be/kZlXWp6vFdE

She Laughs at the Future

Proverbs 31:25

She is clothed with strength and dignity,
and she laughs without fear of the future.

You know those calendars that have a saying for each day of the year? I have one on motherhood that I have been reading for years. Some of the sayings are so familiar that I just smile when I see the calendar flip to that day. Others hit me in a new way each time depending on where life finds me at that moment. A few weeks ago, this verse popped up, and caused me to stop in my get ready routine and really think about this idea.

"She laughs without fear of the future." I love that.. I desire that, but if I am honest I do not always live into that. I mean, really? Have you read the news lately? Today.. the top headlines are of a 19 year who was murdered in a completely senseless crime (is there ever a murder that makes sense?), followed by a story of an elderly couple who decided that death was the only way to escape the pains of this life. This is the life that my daughter is moving into? This is where I am called to look into the future with hope?

How? I don't think that it is about me being super mom (although I try). I think that it is more about knowing that my daughter is loved more than I love her! I remember years ago saying this very thing to a friend of mine who had anxiety about the future of her then pre-adolescent son. "You know, God loves him more than you do." I said this with all of the confidence of someone who had not yet become a mother. And today as I sit her thinking about what the next few years may hold for my daughter, these words resound in my mind again. But now, I understand the pain of mothering. Yes, being a mother is beautiful. Watching my daughter play volleyball with confidence, hearing and seeing her take in the world with enthusiasm. This is beautiful, but it is also painful. I once read that having a child is like having a piece of your heart walk around outside of your body everyday. So true! Even in moments when I preoccupied with some other task, I am aware of my daughter and carrying her with me.

So, laughing at the future? Impossible alone. Impossible when I am caught in the swirl of my thoughts. But completely possible when I am reminded of God's love for her. And you know.. that love is made even more tangible through the love of our community. As I see people (especially other women) delighting in her. I cannot help but feel hope. I cannot help but be reminded that we are not alone in this, that tomorrow will be what it will be but not imposssible.

That is such a comforting thought, and one that in those times of "what if" I rest in!