When I was a little girl, I was always pushing for the next thing in life. I can’t wait to be in middle school….I can’t wait to drive….I can’t wait to go to college…I can’t wait to have a teaching job…I can’t wait to be married. “Don’t wish your life away,” my mom warned me.
I rolled my eyes and wondered when my mom would get a clue.
A few months into married life, I was sitting in our oversized chair thinking about all the things I couldn’t wait to do. My mom’s warning haunted me—Don’t wish your life away, Ruth. In a blink, I realized that I was living the live I once couldn’t wait to live…and I was wishing it away for the next thing.
I rolled my eyes and wondered how I missed my mom’s wisdom for so many years.
It was then I began the journey of embracing contentment in my daily existence. It’s been a hard-fought and valuable discovery of learning to celebrate and value the current season of life.
I almost lost the battle for the past 700+ days. For more than two years the days have been long and the moments rocky in my quest to be content. I know, because more than 700 days ago, I bought a countdown clock with the shrewd purpose of learning to value each fleeting day.
It’s been a rough season with jagged moments making up the topography of the transition from parenting high school teenagers to young adults. I set our countdown clock to our 25th anniversary because at that moment, a new chapter will open. It is full of unwritten pages as our kids all leave our home to begin their own careers and adult lives.
Today the countdown clock reads 27 days. I don’t know what the future holds, but I do know that I’m glad I held onto Psalm 34:18—The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit—and didn’t wish my life away.
