I visited our younger daughter's elementary school where she teaches, and it was so warm and inviting and friendly. I think she is lucky to be a part of such a sweet school. Sometimes, in our twenties, we don't realize what we have and appreciate it. I hope she gets it. Otherwise, we keep searching for something better, and what we really are searching for is right inside us, if we dare look. The right environment is there, if we could bring an openness and gratitude to it.
Watching my kids' grow through their twenties and thirties and now the beginning of the forties is a window into my own state of mind in those decades. I see things, maybe not more clearly, but differently now. I see my big issues. In my twenties I was struggling to find my own path away from my parents, and reacting to ideas rather than my heart. In my thirties I wanted to find work I felt was meaningful and establish ground rules with my family. In my forties I was able to feel more comfortable in my skin, and expand my sense of joy and sorrow. In my fifties I wished to tackle the big philosophical questions and practice my spirituality. In my sixties I want to set my house in order, treasure my connections with people, and honor my body and mind. I am also letting go of a lot of trying to control things or people, and looking for that moment of joy and laughter, and savoring it when it appears.
Gross generalities, but somewhat true, and I get to revisit my whole life, by witnessing my kids and now grandkids' experiences. It's fascinating.
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