Day 1 Treasure #SOL17




"I'm fifteen for a moment
Caught in between ten and twenty
And I'm just dreaming
Counting the ways to where you are"
-"100 Years," Five for Fighting

Lately, I've become more aware of the passing of time. When my almost four year old snuggles on my lap, I breathe her in, knowing her babyhood is almost gone. I can't lift my six year old son anymore. One day I could and then the next I couldn't. He is growing, as he should, but growing means needing me less and less. I remember when he needed me for everything- when I would rock him in his chocolate brown recliner, singing my favorite folk songs to him, like "The Rose." The quiet peace of just the two of us, rocking together. That time, sometimes, felt endless, but the truth is it came and left so very fast. 

When they were babies, it felt like they would always be babies- needy, demanding, exhausting- along with adorable of course. When Megan was born, Alex was only 2. I remember when my single friend came to visit us that first  summer and seemed positively gobsmacked at the sheer effort it took to get us all packed up and in the car to go out to the park with a picnic lunch. It was an utterly exhausting stage of life, but oh, how I wish I knew how fast it really would go by. Did I pause enough to enjoy their littleness? Their round cheeks and cuddly ways? The utter sweetness of a baby sleeping in your arms?

Five years from now, Alex will be nearing 12- a middle schooler. Megan will be almost 9- the same age as the children I teach. How fast these last 5 years have gone. How much faster will these next five years go?

The Slice of Life Story Challenge is my way of slowing down time, of holding onto these moments. Forcing myself to NOTICE. To stop going through the motions of each busy day and breathe, and appreciate, and take in the joy that this season of my life holds. I am not always good at this. My days are packed and I keep packing them in with more to do. But this season of my life will be gone before I know it and these Slices will be precious memories of this unique time. 

I see the SOLSC as a treasure chest. Today, it is empty and this post will be the first trinket placed inside. Each day, another moment will be added. At the end of this challenge, the treasure chest will be filled with the treasures of my life... and I will be richer. 

Welcome March! Looking forward to being part of this journey with all of you, my fellow Slicers. 

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