March 22, 2013: Time

Isn't Garrett cute? His dad thinks so...
then he blinked and 40 yrs passed

Time. An asset often. An area of stress; many times. Although we all cherish it, we also wish it a way at times too. A good friend once shared with me his mother's wise advice "never wish time away". This was shared after some whining on my part on my child's "terrible twos" stage.

So as I sat in church with irrelevant children, back in the day, I would remind myself of this. Instead of sweating it, I remembered there would be a day I would be in church alone; smiling at other's babies and wondering how mine grew so fast. Everyone told me this would happen and it did.

Time is something I value very much. When it's limited, I'm greedy with it. Raising kids I would often think of the value of an hour and how one used poorly was an hour taken away from them. With Garrett in Denver and our time very limited, we have grown used to enjoying every minute we have together. On those weekends where other obligations tie us up, we feel a bit cheated.

Time had a different meaning this last week. It went slowly. As I laid in bed with leg propped, I longed for each day to pass as I would be one day closer to recovery. Was I was wishing time away? Sure sounds like it. My visions were my future days on my bike, running from meeting to meeting, and leisurely gardening in my backyard.

Last week I would mark off each recovery day as a day gone and closer to my goal. I would be bored at times and other times found myself enjoying the quiet. The unexpected silence that is typically unusual in my world brought needed relaxation and clear thoughts. As I teetered between impatience and welcoming the calm, I received a motivational quote via an e-mail that got my attention.

The quote that I woke up to this Thursday morning was "Healing is a matter of time, but it is sometimes also a matter of opportunity." Hmmm...this last week has been an opportunity. Time to smell the roses and think through life. Time to quietly stretch and learn to use my leg again instead of rushing through a grueling cardio workout.

Feeling comfortable in the quiet of my room without the typical noise of life wasn't a bad thing. Everything happens for a reason. If I'm open to it, I may find some opportunities that come out of my perceived misfortune. Time is really what you make of it.