Moving along

The old movie cliche...An airplane takes off and/or lands and you know the film has taken you to another geographic destination. So how do we share our experience of making it to a new place in life? It is difficult for us to make the announcement to friends and family when we have made a leap of understanding or somehow taken our lives to the next level. Words are struggled for and gestures do not always capture the meaning we seek. Some experiences make it easy. Announcing a wedding, pregnancy, new job, new house. These are the obvious standards by which we easily measure growth. But what of the more important changes that occur bit by bit within ourselves? It has been interesting in my own life as I struggle with moving forward, stalling a bit, perhaps losing ground, before a new catalyst provides a boost in the desired direction.

What is more difficult to ascertain is how my loved ones are in their experience. It is easy with the little ones. Hearts are worn on sleeves as they seek to master walking, being independent, teaching elders what they know. Spending time with children is quickly rewarding. They are telling you all the time who they are and what they want. Family gatherings have become joyous in their simplicity. We watch the children to better undertand and laugh at ourselves. My own drama is far less entertaining than the phrases composed by my niece. Every sentence is a wonder. What becomes difficult is watching your sisters and brothers, mother and father as they grapple with life.

There is a familiarity about the tools they use to negotiate sorrow and or joy. The perfectionist will continue to strive for perfection. The doubter will doubt. The optimist will make those "glass-half-full" statements the same way they always have. But how do you connect with them after years of doing so in a patented way? How do you acknowledge their pain beyond saying "I'm sorry?" It is a mystery this life. But I believe, the children understand.