Musings For The Season

Autumn is gently rolling in and our nursery wears the last of her summer garb. September brings so many beginnings; school, dance, choir, theatre, piano, Friendship Club, and more. I always have mixed feelings at this time of year. I mourn the loss of my favourite season and yet, I'm excited for what a new season brings.

Pilates is a beginning for me and this week as I stood in a "relaxed position" listening to the instructor describe the intricacies of our muscles, ligaments and bone structures, I welled up with tears. I was overwhelmed by the beauty of how our bodies were created. The words, fearfully and wonderfully made, waved through my mind over and over. With only four students in this intimate class, it was difficult to hide my emotions but I thought I should spare them at least another week :) Perhaps the day will come when I'll be able to share with these women who their Divine Creator is... unless they already know... we shall see.

Coming back to the "homeschool table", has also brought an intimacy that seemed to evade us with busy summer activities. I sit in a front row seat to the conversations of my children when we're all working closely. The amusement I have found as their audience gives me many anecdotes for after-dinner conversations with my husband. For instance, the older girls were trying to explain something to Emily after she had made a mistake. She declared to them, "I KNOW! I know everything!" They let it go as it was obvious that she was closed to learning the lesson. A few seconds later I felt a tug on my arm and Emily cupped her five year-old hand around my ear. I felt her warm breath as she whispered, "I don't really know everything (giggle) but I just said that."

Oh. :)

My son, likewise, has bewildered me with his brilliance. A few days ago, he very matter-of-factly stated that he knew exactly how to get rid of the monsters in his room. Wow! All three girls went through a stage where they believed there were monsters in their rooms, usually lurking somewhere on the wall or in a closet. They would often beg my husband and I to come and pray and then smoosh them all. We always told them that they didn't need to be afraid because their God is so much bigger and can defeat their enemies through prayer and praise. But my boy, well, he had quite confidently licked those stinkers all on his own!

I wondered how he had conquered the beasts he had lately grown to fear and so I asked him. I wish I had taken video footage to share with you the utterly vicious detail that ensued. With a twisted up face, he described the battle to me and it included a lot of nail scratching and clawing and just "getting that bad guy!" and "He won't be coming back anymore."

When he was done narrating, he grinned from ear to ear, waiting for my support for his victory. I grabbed my little warrior and squeezed him tight. I lavished my praises and pride on him and he soaked it up like a true soldier returning from a hard-fought battle. We talked about where his strength comes from, who the Super-hero is behind the powers of a boy-soldier. He agreed.

I was awestruck by the chasm of this gender difference in our family. It's wonderful.

So, while my oldest decides with me whether to keep her Language Arts program or switch to a new one, and my second daughter sharpens her fifth pencil before ten a.m., and my two little ones beg for a large fort to be built amongst our schoolwork, I muster patience, complain a little to my husband, and pray for courage for this year. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, I repeat to myself and... I believe this is what He's asking of me in this season. I choose love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control and welcome a new season.