While there were a lot of good times on this trip the best time was spending time with family. Just hanging out and enjoying being with Stacie, Tom, Chase and Haley while they live their busy lives. At my age I would be exhausted if I had to try to keep up with them all the time. On the first Friday that I was there we went to dinner at a really good Mexican restaurant that we could walk to from the house and then we walked a little further and went to a BBQ Bash. It was a really good time with some very good music by a band from Ireland.
The rest of the weekend was a "typical" weekend for the kids. Chase had hockey practice on Saturday where he received his home uniform. I went with Chase and Tom while Stacie and Haley had a transportation fair to attend. It was a fundraiser for Stacie's job.
On Sunday I got to share in a big milestone as Chase had his first official hockey game. It is amazing to me how much he has gone from just learning to skate to playing competitive hockey. He just seems to be growing up so fast.
Jackie and I both got to see his first game and of course his best fan Haley was right there with her "kid's temperature" hot chocolate from Starbucks. His other grandparents and his aunt Kate will be able to watch him play later this month when they visit. He's excited that we all got to watch him play but I bet we're more excited that we got to see him.
What I am so impressed by with my daughter and son-in-law is how they always make time for the kids. They are both busy with their jobs, in particular Tom's traveling and Stacie's crazy schedule particularly as she establishes herself in a new role. But the kids and each other are still obviously their most important priority. And even as busy as they are they still have to say no to things so they can take a breath. I'm really proud of them both for the way they realize the importance of working together for family and making sure they appreciate each other in their crazy hectic lives.
Coincidentally, or maybe not, I had brought a book with me that I was given by Joe on my last trip to Colorado. I hadn't read it yet and didn't know if I would on this trip but after finishing a Twain book and a book that Tom recommended to me I decided to read it while I had time. The book is, Addicted to Busy- Recovery for the Rushed Soul by Brady Boyd a pastor from Colorado Springs. I enjoyed the book mostly because Boyd didn't have any easy answers and didn't pretend that he did. There was some good advice however; for example knowing when to say no and how just saying no to some things can make a big difference in your available time and lowering stress.
He quoted Wayne Muller, "This one little conversation, this one extra phone call, this one quick meeting, what can it cost? But it does cost, it drains yet another drop of our life. Then, at the end of days, weeks, months, years, we collapse, we burn out, and cannot see where it happened. It happened in a thousand unconscious events, tasks, and responsibilities that seemed easy and harmless on the surface but that each, one after the other, used a small portion of our precious life".
He also shared the importance of recognizing the fact that you aren't a lesser person simply because you didn't get everything done.
"Expanding the idea beyond the walls of a church, we think if we don't get every room vacuumed, every bookshelf dusted, every meal made by hand, every child's homework folder initialed, every birthday party attended, every plant watered, every inch of grass mowed, every load of laundry folded, every lacrosse practice made, every book read, every app mastered, every televised sporting event watched, every everything done, we will somehow be lesser human beings". In response to that all I can say is AMEN! We have to know when it is ok to simply say no or to let things go. It'll all work out in the end.
Finally, he quoted a prayer from A New Zealand Prayer Book. The prayer is called "A Night Prayer" and is one that I think we should all consider praying daily: "It is night after a long day. What has been done has been done; what has not been done has not been done, let it be."
It was a good time visiting.
Just as I did at Joe's in Colorado I spent a lot of pleasant time reading and just watching nature from their deck.
While it was still early Fall I got to see a lot of beautiful changes on my runs.
Another milestone that was taking place while I was there was Chase losing his first tooth, a process that lasted almost as long as I was there. He was finally successful in getting it out when he ate an apple on his way back from a scouting day with Tom.
Before I left I had to make a point to go back to El Maguey and enjoy another meal. Tom was working and Chase was in school so after Haley got out of school we went for lunch. It was good again!
I'm grateful that I can share time in their lives a couple of times a year.
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