Mid-October in Southern California, and it finally feels like fall. The sun is still out, but a cool breeze drifts through the fence.
I’m at my daughter’s tennis match. She’s a junior in high school and growing up fast.
All I can think about is how many days are left where I get to watch my beautiful baby girl dance across the court. How many days left where those blue eyes give me a quick glance after a win? How many more conversations in the car to and from the game? How many secret ice cream cones after the match?
How many?
Not enough.
Beautiful words. Savor each ride, ice cream cone, Dad-daughter glance from the court. Record every laugh, story, song share and post-match retrospective in the chambers of your heart…but not so deeply that you can’t swiftly call them up to the surface in a moment of parental melancholy! These specific moments are definitely fleeting. But I’ve found the essence of these moments sustains, re-emerging in the new experiences you two will create in the next chapter, father and daughter. The situations will be different but the essence and the indelible nature of the sharp impressions left within you will nestle deeply in their new spaces, filling you with a different level of joy – and, Hope.
Wait for the day when the grandkids start arriving and your joy will be multiplied many times over. You’ll see your kids again incarnated all over again and relive moments like those you describe at levels that make you think your heart could explode.