Saturday, November 24, 2012

Little Bits: The Older Three

Nests.  They collect themselves all over my home.  Sweet little things that find their way into sweeter hands and onto my table.  My favorite?  The one where the mama bird gathered little bits of this and that, scavenged building materials that she wove together into a home.  It requires a gentle hand and an observant eye. 
 
After reading Tracey's book, I've been paying closer attention to the bits my older three leave around.  No more do they wander into the house carrying little treasures from outside.  Instead, they let their own lives drop and scatter wherever they will.  And I have been carelessly stepping over the teen years.  The boots I trip over.  The bags left by the door.  Airsoft bullets in cushions.  Stickers that mark interests. The details in rooms behind the closed doors (closed only by mandate to guard from tiny hands).  There are things that I have ignored as precious.  Things and images that one day I will cup tenderly in my palm for the treasures they are.  I commit now not to wait until someday.
 
 
 
Not to be outdone by his brother's compound bow, John took to the woods and made his own.  I am amazed at how strong and accurate it is.  And, of course, a contest, a battle of the bows is always a given.  The handcrafted held its own.






 
 
 




 
 See the blur out the window? Yeah.  That would be the last 15 years.

4 comments:

  1. So, so guilty of not cupping tender moments. Guilty of rushing and rushing. That pic of the ballet shoes is precious. Looks as if it should be framed.

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    1. Amy,
      It seems the older they get the less we hold those moments. I wish I knew why. On the other hand, though, I just so enjoy them now: their senses of humor, the depth of conversations and their thoughts. My prayer is that you are finding this with your girls.

      Thanks for the compliment on the photo. That was my fav, too.

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  2. This is so beautiful, Beth! To remember that the things that may not seem as "cute" as the things of newborns and sweet toddlers are just as beautiful a part of their journeys and to hold them close to your mama heart. I think of you often and hope you are well!

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    1. Audra,
      I tell you, that book on photography was a real game changer for me on this very topic, of seeing those things that represent each of my older kids. So good to touch base with you today even if only in a few texts.

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