"As I started to picture the trees in the storm, the answer began to dawn on me. The trees in the storm don't try to stand up straight and tall and erect. They allow themselves to bend and be blown with the wind. They understand the power of letting go. Those trees and those branches that try too hard to stand up strong and straight are the ones that break. Now is not the time for you to be strong ..."
Julia Butterfly Hill
i haven't talked much with my sister since the new baby arrived. i called one night while mom was still up, but the conversation was strained with all the overwhelming chaos that is life, as we know it.
i sent her these song lyrics in an email:
One Heartbeat At A Time ~ Steven Curtis Chapman
You’re up all night with a screaming baby
You run all day at the speed of life
And every day you feel a little bit less
Like the beautiful woman you are
So you fall in bed when you run out of hours
And you wonder if anything worth doing got done
Well maybe you just don’t know
Or maybe you’ve forgotten
That you, you are changing the world
One little heartbeat at a time
Making history with every touch and every smile
Oh you, you may not see it now
But I believe that time will tell
How you, you are changing the world
One little heartbeat at a time
With every “I know you can do it”
And every tear you kiss away
So many things that seem to go unnoticed
They’re just like the drops of rain
Over time, they become a river
You’re beautiful, so beautiful
How you’re changing the world, yeah you’re changing the world
I believe that you, you are changing the world
One little heartbeat at a time
since i'm lazy, go check it out here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppOJkyYonIg
whenever i get too terribly overwhelmed, i try to refer back to erma bombeck: "Giving birth is little more than a set of muscular contractions granting passage of a child. Then the MOTHER is born."
i've always loved that one article she wrote after discovering she had cancer:
"If I had my life to live over, I would have talked less and listened more.
I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained and the sofa faded.
I would have eaten the popcorn in the 'good' living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.
I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth.
I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.
I would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in storage.
I would have sat on the lawn with my children and not worried about grass stains.
I would have cried and laughed less while watching television - and more while watching life.
I would have shared more of the responsibility carried by my husband.I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.
I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show soil or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.
Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.
When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, "Later. Now go get washed up for dinner."
There would have been more "I love you's".. More "I'm sorrys" ...
But mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute... look at it and really see it ... live it...and never give it back."
No comments:
Post a Comment