Growing up is not – as I thought when I was a child – something you do until you finish school, get a job, move out of your parents’ house, and head out to make a life of your own. Growing up is a much longer, much slower, process. It is not something that we can rush through. It requires experiences. Growing up is joyful, and it is painful. It teaches you beautiful things, but along the way you discover darkness and sadness as well.
When Oliver was born, we started talking constantly about how quickly he was changing and how quickly he was “growing up.” We were right – at a little over two he is nothing like the newborn we took home from the hospital. But right from the start I began to realize that I was changing too. Each day was about learning how to take care of a baby and somehow keep taking care of myself and keep caring for my relationships with my husband, my family, my friends, and God. I’ve been doing my own growing up right along with Oliver.
