It’s the year 2039 and the house is quiet. Too quiet. You just finished a load of laundry that only took you one day instead of four like it used to. The smell of homemade supper floats through the home. You remember the thunderous sound of tiny little feet when you’d call “dinner’s ready.” How could such tiny feet be so loud? You smile thinking about that sound. You finish eating and clean up but it looks different than it used to. No wiping sticky places at the table. No spaghetti sauce on your white walls. No crumbs covering your entire floor. No bath time...
The days are long but the YEARS ARE SO SHORT. Seasons come as quickly as they go. Our homes will be quiet and time will be our own again. And I’m willing to bet that although we’ll enjoy the stillness we will miss the thunder. We will long for the sound of littles playing, bathing tiny, stinky bodies before bed, bedtime stories and morning snuggles and the smile they give you when you pour them a mug full of hot chocolate.
I’ve always felt the sting of time in motherhood but I feel it even more as time passes. Maybe it’s because it only seems to go more quickly. Maybe it’s because as perspective changes so do priorities. All I know is we only get to live this life, the one that’s right in front of us, ours for the taking, ONE TIME. It’s up to each of us to make it a good one not only for ourselves but for our little people. To not spend time wishing any of the hard parts away because we recognize that the beautiful parts are even more beautiful because of the hard.
One day the house will be quiet and you’ll be able to listen to that audio book or have that conversation uninterrupted or hear yourself think but for now remember that these will be the years you’ll cherish the very most. The babbling of your baby will be the sound you’ll wish you could replay. The tiny arms wrapped around your neck; you’d give anything to feel them just one more time.