Well, I had written a little reflection on the end of summer, the importance of family, and a memory from our wedding day where my then-new husband and I were told by an older couple how lucky we were…how everything lied before us, how our story was just at the beginning and how all things remained to be seen. It was a crystallizing moment for me and I remember it clear as a bell. I had a similar moment today as we walked on the beach, and I looked up and saw my family, walking freely before me, separate of me, but connected at the heart. The gang’s all here. My story is still being written, but so much is already in the rearview. Also, I felt how proud I am of all of us, for riding this weird wave of pandemic life, and all the shifts that have taken place: in their mode of education, how often they have seen their friends, the number of sports that they play…. oh and on and on and on (and on… and on).
And then we drove home from the beach to have our first day of school tomorrow, thus beginning this topsy turvy school year. While the car was stopped at a red light (being driven by my husband) and I sat beside him ordering groceries online, a car slammed into the back of ours. My head, tilted down to look at my phone, drilled down and then snapped way back and slammed into the seat. Our calm evening spent preparing for remote school…that sort of got a bit jacked up (just like this whole year, in a way). But it gave me pause, and made me think of the many lessons we’ve been learning this year. Life can change in an instant. A heartbeat. A breath. You cruise along through life thinking things are stable, comfortable, always designed to exist just exactly as they are… but one day, things can go bottom up. Something can hit you out of left field, and everything after that moment is different. In a flash, your health, your car, your home, your relationships, your stability, your money, your loved ones can slip right through your fingers. I said that tonight to my husband, before the accident even happened. I said, “you really never know exactly when or how things will change….so I guess we have to just be so thankful, all the time, for all that we have. Because everything just keeps on changing. And these amazing situations we’ve been in just go.” And then we got hit. Like, okay, Universe, I get it!! Literally. I. Get. It. Enough already 😉
But the other truth of the matter is that how we deal with the after reveals so much. In our car tonight, we immediately checked to make sure everyone was alright. We saw that we all were breathing and able to move our limbs and could still see the sun hanging in the sky. And I realized right then, as crummy as that just was….well? That alone, right there, is about as good a situation as anyone could ask for, because we are all still here and we are healthy, so that’s all we will cling to. In this moment. Life may be rough sometimes, but if we are simply here and healthy, then some days, it turns out, that’s good enough.
Sending love out there to everyone beginning their school journeys in whatever shape or form that looks like in your neck of the woods. Everything this year, for all of us, changed in an instant. And it will again. But for now, may we all seek peace in whatever way possible and be grateful to simply be here and healthy.
Care to share your thoughts?