3 minute read
Thoughts from the Editor
Thoughts from the Editor
“Isn't it funny how day by day nothing changes, but when you look back, everything is different?” These words, often attributed to C.S. Lewis, capture the reality of raising children. As a young father, I often heard the advice to cherish the moments with your kids, as my little ones would be crawling around, eating things off the floor. In my arrogance or exhaustion, I would politely shrug off the sage advice and go back to dutifully changing the diapers or loading up the pack-n-play for the hundredth time. Nowadays I often find myself, between the moments of scheduled chaos, in quiet reflection on how time has flown by. I wish that someone would have told me that parenting is a mixture of joy, frustration, and an ache for time to stand still.
This quote from the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius poignantly summarizes the importance of seizing the moment. “No one ever loses a life other than the one they are living, and no one ever lives a life other than the one they are losing. The longest and the shortest life, then, amount to the same, for the present moment lasts the same for all and is all anyone possesses.”
The other day, my iPhone played a slideshow full of photos from beach trips with my middle daughter, from her first month of life to this summer, accompanied by the kind of music that guarantees at least a teary eye. In an instant, I was transported through some of the most valuable moments of my life, and I could understand what truly mattered.
There was a time I believed I had a decent grasp on life—that is, until I held my eldest daughter for the first time. The fragility and immense responsibility I felt in that moment was exhilarating and overwhelming. Fast forward through countless bedtime prayers, broken arms, braces, lectures, and plenty of hugs, and you'd think I'd have this parenting thing down to science. But just when I think I've got the hang of it, my teenagers pull the rug out from under my well-placed feet.
Our family gatherings aren’t picture-perfect, and I’m occasionally the cause of my children's eye-rolls. But I can assure you of the profound joy and fulfillment that comes from nurturing these relationships.
So, here's a piece of unsolicited advice from one father to anyone out there navigating the tumultuous waters of family life: Cherish the moments, both big and small. The messy breakfast tables, the school drop-offs, the bedtime stories— because they pass by in the blink of an eye.
