Changes everywhere

I love autumn, with the cooler weather and colorful leaves, although I’m always a little sad when it arrives because it means winter isn’t far behind. I am not a lover of cold weather. And now that I’m over 50, I recognize that I’m in the autumn of my life and winter with its snow white hair and slower moving is not far off. (Who am I kidding? I started  having snow white hair when I was 38!)

So many changes are happening all around me. Some days I feel like gasping for air, like a fish out of water.  Too many things happening too fast to process.  Not enough time…

One son is moving to North Carolina. Another to Harrisonburg. My daughter landed two new jobs. They have all been through a dry spell for the last month or so, between jobs and between homes, trying to get back on their feet after life threw a series of changes at them. As parents, we do what we can to help if needed, but usually let them figure out their own problems and solve things. They are all good kids, bright, and have plenty of problemsolving skills.  That doesn’t stop a mother hen from clucking over her chicks, however.

I remember when they were all younger. I would go to each bedroom at night before I went to bed, checking to make sure they were covered up (and breathing…most mothers do that, don’t they?) Two in this bedroom, two in that bedroom, two in each of the two bedrooms down the hall…and then one in the crib in our room.  Four and a half stops until bedtime. I would watch their sleeping faces and smile at the angelic expressions, or their sleep positions, curled up like pretzels or sprawled out half on and half off the bed.  I couldn’t rest until I had fulfilled that late-night check on them to make sure all was well.

Sometimes now I call them on their cell phones just to make sure they are okay. Most of them subscribe to the "no news is good news" philosophy and I don’t hear from them regularly. I just need to know all is well, and that despite the changes life tosses their way, they are alright.