Sipping Tea in the Garden

Boil some water; make a nice pot of tea. Put on a shady hat and sit with me in the morning sunshine of a lovely garden. It’s the end of another school year. For some of you it is the end of your first year of homeschooling. You made it! For others, it is another of many more to come. For six of us, it will end with children graduating from our schools and on to other endeavors. It’s a good time to sit and reflect.

Sunday was a milestone in my life as a mother…my firstborn child left the nest. When my children were young, I couldn’t bear to think of this day. How would I handle the day they left Mommy? How could they ever be ready to live on their own?

We dedicated each of them to the Lord, promising to raise them in His name. He entrusted them to us, such a huge task. We did what we thought was best over the years. We prayed for them, we taught them, we disciplined them, we loved them, and we hoped. One day, each of them made their own decisions for Christ and we discipled them and watched them grow in their faith. We watched as our older children embraced Jesus fully on their own, and can hardly wait to see that blossom in our younger ones.

I’ve questioned my own mother over and over, “how did you let go?” She has been such a wonderful example for me. She doesn’t know, she just did it.

So, how did Sunday go?  I truly believe that our Heavenly Father was growing and maturing me the same as He was my child. I was ready for this. I am so excited for him and his bride-to-be. Sure, I miss him, but I am not weeping. I am not heart broken. I have finished my job of day to day mom. I will always be here as an advisor when he asks me. But he is ready to be a man on his own. Ready to leave his father and mother and go prepare a place for his bride with our blessing.

Wow, the Lord is so good. We call these children “ours” but we need to remember they are really His, entrusted to us. We have them in our homes for such a short time, but if we follow His plan, their leaving is easier, and I trust that these heart bonds we have will hold through miles and miles.