Isn't it funny how time sneaks up on us. My oldest daughter will be 17 in just over a week, and I remember like it was yesterday the early morning ride to the hospital for her scheduled C-section. She was 2 weeks overdue, and she and I both were in distress. In fact, her distress level was such that the doctor decided to put me to sleep instead of trying to get the epidural in and working, so she was about an hour old before I was awake enough to see her for the first time. Even though I was already an aunt and a big sister to 4, I remember being worried that I wasn't "ready" to be a Mom. This was a serious job! With a lot of help my family and a lot of prayers, I have been able to navigate the parent journey pretty well. Don't get me wrong....I have made some mistakes. Don't we all? I am thankful that my mistakes have seemed to have very little impact on her, and she has grown into a beautiful, intelligent young woman. And that brings me to my topic for today.
I applied for and prayed for several jobs this summer. I did go on one interview, but I didn't get the job. I chalked it up to the fact that I haven't worked for someone else in a few years and that I was either over or under qualified for the positions I applied for. I reminded myself that the job God had planned for me may not even be available yet, and decided to focus on getting signed up for school and enjoying the last couple of weeks of summer vacation with my girls. Today, as I was noting that this was the last weekday to sleep-in before school starts on Monday, I also noted that summer had flown by. Then it hit me. In my search for a job and my concerns about our finances, I had not remembered that this was my oldest daughter's last official summer break. She will start her last year of school on Monday. She will graduate next June, and I know that her summers from that point on will be ruled by things in the "real world". Things like a job, a boyfriend, planning for college and so many other things that happen as you move from childhood to adulthood. In my haste, I almost missed something that I will never have the opportunity to experience again....precious time spent with my first born during her last summer break. Days sleeping in and swimming in the pool. Days telling her to get off the computer! Days reminding her that she needed to be thinking about college and making plans! Days telling her that Jerry Springer was trash TV and that she should be doing something better with her time....like cleaning her room! A couple of movies, a couple of lunches and a few more seemingly insignificant events that I will always remember. I have always heard that you should thank God for unanswered prayers. Today I thanked him for one of mine. The very thing that I had been praying for would have been the very thing that kept me from being able to spend this precious time with my daughter.
I don't know what you have been praying for. Maybe a job or maybe a miracle. I encourage you to take some time today to look for the blessings in your unanswered prayer. I know that I sure am :)
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