A photograph where this kid is motionless is hard to come by these days. Often I look at her smiling up at me, when the light hits her just right, and wonder where in the world my camera is. By the time I find it, the moment is over and she's buzzing about.Lily gets around pretty quickly these days, even occasionally forsaking her beloved scooch for crawling. She pulls up easily on everything, including us. And yesterday, after crawling all over the library, Adam and I were reading to her and she stood up and let go. She stood up on her own, and then she clapped. I had to choke back tears. She is changing every day, and I get to see it unfold. Every minute. And I'm so grateful.
My pastor handed off to me The Mission of Motherhood by Sally Clarkson, and I've had my nose in it ever since.
The hard, daily, repetitive work of making a home a haven, providing healthy meals, correcting and training little ones, and constantly cleaning up messes is perceived as menial labor instead of the stuff from which godliness is built. -p.35As glad as I am to be teaching again part time in the fall, I am glad to get a little perspective here. Being a mom is priority one, not something I give my leftovers to after the "real" work is done. I know that it's going to be hard, but I'm hoping to get all my teaching-related tasks done away from our home while I'm on campus. Lily will be in Mom's Day Out, and though that may not be ideal, a few hours away from home interacting with other kids can't be bad.
Instead of pursuing a career with mothering tucked around the edges, [we should choose] to focus first on the mission of motherhood. -p.44
We need to commit to living as mothers with undivided hearts -- dedicating ourselves fully to the task of building a home and nurturing our children. -p.49
Motherhood is not easy so far, and from what I hear it doesn't get easier, but I want to be joyful in each moment I have with Lily and with Adam. In the struggles and the pain and the wonder of it all, we have each other, and no other job -- not writing or teaching or anything else -- could be more significant.
And most important now: rest, which Clarkson blogged about this week (timely, no?).
3 comments:
Such a sweet photo. And that book looks just amazing. I will have to add it to my list.
This book looks fantastic! Mind if I add you on Goodreads to mine your list for suggestions? :)
Christine, I got your book recommendation. Thanks for passing it along. :)
Bethany, it's a great book so far. And now we're friends on Goodreads.
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