The black dot analogy connects to many of my life experiences. Specifically, the reality that parents and kids often remember experiences differently. It seems that moms are often harder on ourselves than our kids are on us. It makes me wonder, are kids somehow able to keep their focus on the whole page while parents struggle to see beyond the dot?
Love is so complex. It includes feelings, emotions, choices, actions, words, and paradox. SO MUCH paradox.
Happy New Year and cheers to our first Unexpected Ever Afters blog post of 2022! To close out the past year and start anew, we thought we’d do something a little different: a joint post sharing gratitude for 2021, excitement for 2022, and a toast to the New Year. We are excited to share our memories, stories, and hopes with you. We hope you join with your own toast to 2022!
The black dot analogy connects to many of my life experiences. Specifically, the reality that parents and kids often remember experiences differently. It seems that moms are often harder on ourselves than our kids are on us. It makes me wonder, are kids somehow able to keep their focus on the whole page while parents struggle to see beyond the dot?
Hope has brought renewed opportunities to reflect on and process the past season; to leave the lonely routines of COVID uncertainty and create new rhythms of joy and hope.
As I reflected on this transition to a new season, one question in particular kept repeating in my mind: What might it feel like to grow out of the season of uncertainty and lean into a season of hope?
As a stay-at-home parent, some of the biggest stresses for me throughout this pandemic have been adjusting to a wide-open schedule, concurrently fulfilling multiple roles, and dealing with a perpetual avalanche of thoughts and emotions.
I originally wrote this piece only a few weeks into our spring school COVID-19 closure. And, it is safe to say that our stress levels continue to remain high. However, the suggestions in this post continue to be applicable. First, breathe, take the time to slow down, focus on your breath, and actively calm down your brain. Second, find the truth. As I wrote in this post, “I have found that focusing on truth and being aware of the impact of my thoughts on my feelings and actions makes a difference. Fear should not get to control this (or any) situation.” And last, “look for the helpers.”
That tiny yellow “flower” was my whisper of hope, my lifeline to start moving out of the muck. It turns out that a whisper can be powerful.
There will be more times where I’ll wish to simply “skip tomorrow,” but I can take comfort knowing that through it all, I will not be alone.
the unexpected ever afters 