New Year, New Challenges

We are half way through our first week of the new school year. Boy am I tired! I did not work today and was able to take Cynthia and Annalee to the park. It made me reminisce on a time in our lives when we were not hurried or on a set schedule with more to-do's than we could say grace over. Emma and Katie have so many memories of days at the park, wandering around malls, going for hikes and play dates. Cynthia has a few of these memories also. Poor Annalee doesn't even know what a play date is! I am afraid her childhood memories will revolve around chasing her sisters up and down the road from one volleyball game to another and one piano or fiddle function to the next.
Yes, today was a good day. My phone did not ring once (a gift from God) and my attention was totally focused on my children. Cynthia got a taste of being a "fun" big sister to Annalee without anyone to direct her every move. The fact that I am still in a full leg brace following knee surgery only serves to give her more freedom with passing along orders to Annalee!
But now tomorrow looms! I am ready for it. The girls are on track with school ( thanks to the home school co-op) and I am gearing up for a busy year. God is blessing me with lots of business and has answered my request that I would find favor in the eyes of my colleagues and mentors. I am embarking on a challenging year of travel with BioSET, doing an internship under Dr. Cutler, and teaching the intermediate seminars beginning in December.
All of this hustle and bustle causes the days to fly by quickly and as I watch my dear, sweet Grandmother lose her life to Alzheimer's I see that this is the day for sowing seeds of faith, for stopping to listen to the silly joke that does not make any sense, for holding back with criticism and instead giving praise. My dear friend Katy and I frequently remark that tomorrow is not ever promised us. Today is all we have, and that makes me think harder about the legacy I am leaving for those that come after me. What will my girls remember most? My harsh tone or my smile? Will they remember when I played games with them and stayed up late watching movies or will they remember me being too tired to interact with them in the evening? When they have their own children, will they be equipped to raise them in a Godly home, and will they want to bring them to visit me? I hope that whatever they remember about their childhood, they will see my motives and forgive my ocean of shortcomings with them.
There will never be another time that is more opportune than this to do what God put me here to do. I must get on with it!