Summertime around the pool has been especially exciting this year. Both of my boys are floatie-free and happy as clams in the water, splashing, squealing, and endlessly screaming “Cannonball!”
It seems like milestones come in waves during motherhood. Those early years were full of firsts: first words, first foods, first steps, first full night of sleep (that one took us longer than I had hoped). As the boys have grown, the landmarks have become more spaced out, and yet this summertime has brought them by the bushel.
We’re tackling shoelaces, saying goodbye to training wheels, and losing teeth, and I’m not sure what I think about it. Everyone has always said, “hold onto the moments, Mama, it goes by quickly.” They never said I’d want to hold onto these moments and my babies because the world beyond can be, well, terrifying.
According to a study published by the International Journal of Pediatric Endocrinology, growth rates in children have seasonal variability. Plainly speaking, kids grow more in the spring/summer than they do in the fall/winter. Maybe it has something to do with longer daylight hours, Vitamin D, and its effect on the bones. Maybe it’s just some phenomenon that we can’t perfectly explain.
I find comfort in such mysteries, things we can’t totally explain because they are past our comprehension. Some might say that is being too easily satisfied. I call it experience. Or faith. I can’t explain the peace that comes from trusting Jesus Christ, or the mystery that is the Holy Trinity, but I’ve seen the effects.
In a crazy, upside-down world, where most news is one continuous distress signal, I choose different. It’s been one of the greatest milestones of my motherhood—trusting God more than government, finances, health…even more than myself. Most milestones are accomplished and moved beyond. Fully surrendering all to Him, including trusting Him with my children, is one milestone I’ve had to revisit again and again. Grace tells me that’s okay. I’m thanking God for His peace and His promise, and I’m clinging to that moment today. I’m also showing off my cannonball skills.
*Feature photo by Toni Cuenca on Unsplash
