Cornfield Conversation

As I was running among the cornfields behind my house this morning, I was bumming because so many things are changing in my life.  To some, these changes would seem minor, but to someone as change-adverse as myself, they loom large.  Here they are:

• My oldest son is in China and I haven’t seem him since May 18.  And he will only be home for a week before he leaves for college again.
• My oldest daughter leaves for college in a month and works most evenings now.  In fact, we already took out a leaf in the table because we have only 4 most nights.
• My younger daughter nannies 3 days a week all day, and as we speak, is in Haiti, for 10 days.  I have to schedule dates with her because of her busy life.
• My youngest son also works three days a week, but will have to alter his schedule soon because he starts freshman football two-a-days in a matter of weeks.
• My summers feel different now because I don’t have anyone playing in the sprinklers and tracking water through my house. And I’m not quite sure how to do “summery” things like go to the library and the pool and the park for picnics and to garage sales all by myself.  In fact, my whole life feels different because I’ve operated as a mom for so long that I don’t know how to do otherwise and I know I have complained about these things a lot but I’m feeling my way in entirely new territory here and talking about it helps me.  Thank you for your patience.

But before I got super bummed and started crying among the stalks, God reminded me that lots of things in my life are staying the same and that I should rejoice in that.  So I thought of them.  And I did.  Rejoice that is.  And by the time I got back from my run, I was feeling very blessed and a little more stable.  Running has a way of doing that for me. These are the unchangeables in my life:

• Brent isn’t leaving.  He’s sticking with me for better or worse.
• My home isn’t changing.  I told Brent I wasn’t moving ever again (God willing) when we moved in here in 1997.
• My neighborhood is staying mostly the same.  We all been here together for almost 14 years. I have the best neighbors in the world.
• My pets aren’t planning to leave anytime soon, as far as I know, and I can rock a cat or take my dog on a walk on our special path every night if I want to.
• My parents and my sisters will continue to love me and support me even when I complain about my kids growing up.
• My faithful friends will continue to be faithful.
• The beautiful sunrises I marvel at every morning will keep on being beautiful.
• The gorgeous sunsets I see every night will not stop.
• God will keep on hearing my prayers every day and answering them perfectly.
• He will continue to protect me and keep me in the palm of His hand (“I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.”  John 10:28)
• I can keep writing in this blog.
• And I can still drink green smoothies every morning.

How’s that for blessings?!  See, I still have lots of stable things to lean on…and I need to remember them and thank God for them when I start to feel all wobbly and off balance.  But mostly, I need to seek the One who never changes and hide myself in Him.

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

Hebrews 13:8