When my children were small I had this quotation framed and then hung in the hall: “There are two lasting things we give our children. One is roots and the other is wings.” Maybe I should have hung it in a less public place. My children have taken that “wing” part very seriously.
Today my son is leaving for Officer’s Candidate School with the Marines. Even though this part of the training will be combined with his last two years of college, he will be a different person when he returns at the end of August. I have no doubt he will have grown quite a bit. From personal experience, I know a thing or two about growing. First of all, it can be challenging (painful) and secondly, it is worth it.
However, as his mother, I am stuck on the painful part. No mother would willingly send her child into a challenging situation without a little bit of her heart packed in the suitcase. Maybe that is why I had to retell my favorite story about him to the group that had gathered last Sunday night to wish him well. I just couldn’t stop myself from sharing the fact that for the first five years of life, he rarely (never) took the McDonald’s “Happy Meal” bucket off of his head. No kidding. This child walked around with a bucket on his head for years.
I confided to my friend that I had shared this story. She consoled me by telling me that most families are unwilling to let their relatives evolve. Possibly; but I think in sharing that story, I am confirming in my own mind what I have always known. This child is different; he is not a follower. He was born to lead.
One day I will see him in an Officer’s uniform. Will that new picture replace the picture of the child with a bucket on his head? I can hardly image relinquishing it because I have hung on to it so tightly for all of these years. My hope is that I will be able to see them side-by-side.
Please pray for him and for all of the brave men and women who serve our country.
Today my son is leaving for Officer’s Candidate School with the Marines. Even though this part of the training will be combined with his last two years of college, he will be a different person when he returns at the end of August. I have no doubt he will have grown quite a bit. From personal experience, I know a thing or two about growing. First of all, it can be challenging (painful) and secondly, it is worth it.
However, as his mother, I am stuck on the painful part. No mother would willingly send her child into a challenging situation without a little bit of her heart packed in the suitcase. Maybe that is why I had to retell my favorite story about him to the group that had gathered last Sunday night to wish him well. I just couldn’t stop myself from sharing the fact that for the first five years of life, he rarely (never) took the McDonald’s “Happy Meal” bucket off of his head. No kidding. This child walked around with a bucket on his head for years.
I confided to my friend that I had shared this story. She consoled me by telling me that most families are unwilling to let their relatives evolve. Possibly; but I think in sharing that story, I am confirming in my own mind what I have always known. This child is different; he is not a follower. He was born to lead.
One day I will see him in an Officer’s uniform. Will that new picture replace the picture of the child with a bucket on his head? I can hardly image relinquishing it because I have hung on to it so tightly for all of these years. My hope is that I will be able to see them side-by-side.
Please pray for him and for all of the brave men and women who serve our country.
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