They waved goodbye to our beloved piano teacher and ran off in various directions. One ran toward me to help with dinner, two ran to build a fort and one to the nursery to straighten the vegetable seedlings table. They
just waved goodbye and now it's Friday again. My mind cannot fathom how the weeks fly by. In each moment, the hard ones, minutes drag on. But, as I invite Mrs. A into our living room once again, and she settles at the piano with her music-designed teacher bag, I marvel as time slips through my fingers like the keys under their little hands.
My children clamour to make their teacher a cup of tea and to slip a cookie onto a saucer. I take mental inventory of the past week and note that not all my list items were crossed off. Did I even accomplish
any goals I had set out for the kids, for myself? I silently prayed for mercy, although I know it's not my perfection God requires, but my time.
Once again, June arrives and recital songbooks are tucked under arms as we eagerly find seats in the church hall. Oliver is Mrs. A's youngest of 30 or so, students, so he takes the bench with her first. As usual, our boy is a ham for the audience. It happens to be Daddy's birthday, so he plays, "We Wish You A Happy Birthday" while we all hum. Emily takes her turn and sings both songs into a microphone as she plays, the second being, "Amazing Grace". Molly plays well after much practice and not being sure she even likes the song anymore :) Meg plays "Awesome God" and it flows beautifully. We hug Mrs. A farewell for the summer and place a period at the end of a school year's worth of lessons. I feel as if I am merely weeks removed from the last time I was in this place on recital day. It is another reminder of how time races on.
There is an urgency within me to use well every minute I've been gifted. But, somehow, the clock ticks while I'm forgetting this goal or wasting my time on things that are not of eternal value. It's not that what I'm doing is wrong, it just may be a little off-centre from where God desires me to be. I tend to take items onto my list that are not meant to be there and they end up gobbling precious hours. I must give God my time in order to be fruitful or my attempts to live well will be futile. What does that look like? He let's me know when I'm truly seeking Him (Proverbs 2,3). When I do this, Friday's return won't be woeful, but satisfying as He directs my weekly paths.
Thank you, Mrs. Anger for teaching my children so very lovingly.
