We continue to travel together, mother & daughter :: and yes, I am still the Mom {said with a bit of hmph! and emphasis}.
But the journey is new. Exciting, sad, a bit tentative and altogether the way it should be. The way it needs to be. My hands cannot clasp around hers too tightly; that's a lesson begun many moons ago and is one that I often remind myself of. Support, don't control. Advise, don't tell.
And yet, my heart speaks whispers...she needs you still. No, not for bedtime stories or cradle rocking. No longer for hanging preschool papers on the fridge or assisting with another very odd school project. Sometimes assigned by her mother, the teacher.
She will continue to lean on me for what those acts represented. Care. Affirmation. Lavish love and a bit of ongoing training as well. Just a bit.
So, I pick myself up from the position of looking into the past and wondering how this time came so quickly, swiftly :: I look ahead and with new resolve, anticipate the road now ahead of us.
93. gratitude expressed for a daughter who enjoys life!
94. for a wonderful day shopping for the 'perfect dress' for graduation {tell me, is there such a thing really? she thinks so}
95. and finding that dress at a price we both could justify. gratitude~~finances for our 'wants'
96. laughter, stories, and new memories made during our excursion
97. for a daughter who enjoys her siblings. especially after being the only for a while. for time spent with them :: reading, playing games, listening, sharing
98. a daughter who loves the One who made her and seeks to honor His ways. when failing, starting again.
99. for her faith, that is growing and being refined. for her personality, that has taught me much.
100. the opportunity to continue to journey ahead with her.
