When my daughter heard the good news that the four baby porch birds had hatched, she was immediately sad.
"Oh no, that means they will grow up and fly away." And this from a girl who doesn't read her mama's blog.
But, she gets it. The wrenching of the heart that comes with letting go.
What she can't yet see is that the same growing up that takes a baby away from its nest is the same stretching that made her so confident she would navigate kids' camp just fine this year without a parent sponsor or her older brother going with her. (She was very sad to learn her dad would be the camp speaker this year, as that meant the whole family is going after all!)
It's that same stretching that caused her to want to try a new dance class next semester, to expand her experiences.
And it's that same stretching that means mom gets to be on the quiet side now when she picks out her own clothes for school, developing her own sense of style.
She can't see it now. But, she will.
How do I know? Because I have lived through enough "wrenching" seasons in life to know that on the other side, I have been transformed. And passing through the cocoon never feels comfortable.
It's tight.
It's dark.
It's sometimes lonely.
But, on the other side, I can fly where before I could only walk.
