“Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, The fruit of the womb is a reward.“
~ Psalms 127:3 ~
A minute ago, Cadence was barely out of diapers, drinking from a sippy-cup, and certain that anything she wanted could be had for a quarter. Her quarter was money, after all, and money was all you needed to buy things. I would roll with it for the most part, and just make up the difference at the till, but eventually her inquisitive mind deduced that I hadn’t been forthright and the entire charade was exposed.
It was a breath ago that she turned seven and carried herself as if twenty was mere inches away. Like every parent that wakes up one morning to a bathroom mirror that simply refuses to lie anymore; I wondered where the time went.
Soon there will be boys, and shortly after, some incredibly blessed son of some equally concerned parents will come calling. Next will be a spirited debate over blue or yellow wedding invitations and the day after that a mini-van will pull up dispensing a flock of exuberant little people while a tired dad carries in the youngest and an overstuffed diaper bag.
And again, I will wonder where the time went.
So I woke her early one day this week, before the sun came up, and drove her down to the beach to watch the sunrise together. I opened her truck door, took her hand, and she wanted me to hold her. With her beautiful face pressed against my cheek, we felt the sun warm the air as He blessed us with a new day. We walked for a while, and we took our time inspecting seashells and compared the ones we liked. We talked about everything a young girl can think of and then some. Later, lost in thought for a moment, she took my hand and looked at me, smiled, and the world stood still for a while. She didn’t say anything, she didn’t have to. I saw what this time together mean to her.
And it came to me. If I give her my time, my attention, my respect, my love, and kindness, and if I treat her with dignity, build her up, gently lead and protect her; she will choose a man that will do the same.
Since that day, things have slowed down. I’ve found more time, more patience, and a fascination for my children and the things that fill their days. I laugh more and snuggle more and say yes as much as I can. And I take the time to do things with them most of all.
They will be adults soon enough. But today they are my kids and I am going to savor every single drop of juice from this cup that I have been blessed with.
