Around The Corner

Today, I turned a corner.

The corner that shouts out ‘come to the other side…..we can’t wait to have you’.

I’m entering a new DECADE.

Another 10 down & who knows how many to go!

It’s always  these ‘monumentals’ that make you look back.

On life.

On love.

On things you can’t take back.

On dreams wished for & lost.

On the things you did right.

And the ones you did wrong.

Do I regret anything?

Would I change anything?

What has been good?

What would I like to forget about?

I haven’t traveled the world.  I haven’t sailed any seas or written a book or won a Nobel Peace Prize.  There are no plaques on my wall.  No trophies on a mantle.

But it’s been good!  It’s been really good!

I’ve learned so much.

I’ve loved a ton of people.

I’ve laughed myself silly…..alot!

I’ve shared good times with good friends in good places.

And I’ve shed buckets of tears.

I have celebrated BIG things!

And….I have mourned BIG things!

I have been blessed to watch people enter in to my world.

And….I have also held them when they have left my world.

I have made more friends than enemies.

I have made mistakes & bad decisions.

I have sought & fought forgiveness & learned that my heart is much better off loosing THIS battle!

I have eaten a lot of really good ice cream.

And drank lots of really good wine.

I have completed 4 half-marathons.

And ran some races that weren’t so much feet to pavement but heart to head.   Those races are much harder to train for!

I have kissed lots of frogs.  And been lucky enough to find a few princes.

I have loved on lots of children but NONE have moved my heart SO much then loving the 3 that sleep under my roof every night.  The 3 that I get to pray with & tuck into bed.  The ones that wrap their arms around my neck so tight every day.  The ones I get to teach & watch grow.  The 3 that I am blessed to laugh with & love on.  They are to me like….sprinkles on my favorite ice cream cone. 

I could live my life enjoying just the scoop of yummy chocolate ice cream melting down that sugar cone….but then you add the sprinkles….and it’s so much more amazing!!  It becomes something so much more….extraordinary!  And it’s delicious!

I have seen beauty with my eyes. 

Heard it with my ears. 

And felt it with my heart.

I have been so many things to so many people & hopefully made their world a little happier.   Their hearts a little lighter.  Their perspectives a little better.

I have experienced times that didn’t make me proud of who I was.

And I have done things that I was…so…very…proud…of!

Is turning 40 going to be hard on me?

No Way!

Now comes the good part.

I don’t need to worry about who my friends are or about ‘fitting in’.

I don’t need to lose sleep over things like boyfriends & college finals.  (atleast not my own!)

There is no more question about what I want to be when I grow up or what I want to do with my life…..because I am right where I want to be…..NOW!

Sure there are new things to ponder.

Hip replacement.

Crows feet.

Gray hair.

A shiny Cadillac that is on the horizon.  (but I have to get rid of the minivan first)

Getting shorter.

Where to buy a better bra since it’s ‘only down hill from here’.

Arthritis & joint pain.

But it’s gonna be good!

I will try to not worry so much but feel so much more.

I will appreciate the life God has blessed me with.

I will laugh & love & live so much more vividly (thanks to some good bifocals)

Turning this corner is good.

My stride is hearty but my gait is not so swift that I miss the goodness that surrounds me. 

 I won’t look back with anything but thankfulness for the roads I have traveled so far.  I only look forward to the restoration that this new decade will bring to this sweet, young soul!