I’ve learned some lessons the last few weeks. Life lessons that have made me want to crawl under the covers, pull the blankets over my head, and wish myself back to an easier life—you know, the one where you don’t pay bills, work, or have responsibility. Then I realized that being {almost} twenty seven means putting on your big girl panties and facing things head on.
Some things I’ve learned:
Children get sick. And they get sick at the most inopportune times. The times when you NEED to be at work, the times when grandparents can’t help out, the times when husbands are out of town. And as a mom, the responsibility falls on you to take care of them. You will laugh when I tell you that when Reese was sick two weeks ago {AGAIN}, I stood in front of the bathroom mirror and gave myself a pep talk. It went something like this, “Elizabeth, your baby is sick. You have to miss work and that’s just life. Reese is your priority. He has to be more important than work. Even if you miss a whole week of school, it’s okay. Life will go on.” My speech was actually a little more inspired that morning, but you get the drift. This leads me to life lesson number two…
I married a wonderful man. I really did. He is the hardest worker I know. He puts in countless hours at work and is working at the lake to re-model Mamie and Paw-Paw’s basement. We don’t see him very much, BUT we know he is doing all this work for us. Work has not been fabulous for him lately. There has been a lot of STUFF going on. We had a long talk last weekend and are working on making some big LIFE decisions. At the end of the day though, we have each other, and that’s the most important thing. As I told Lofton, I didn’t marry him thinking he was going to make me a wealthy woman. And if we never make any more money than we have right now, that’s okay. We’ll survive. And we’ll be happy. Which leads us to lesson number three….
Friends and family are the sunshine of life. I have never been one to need a LOT of friends. I’m selective in who I choose to spend my time with and I don’t feel bad for that. I am lucky to have a few GREAT friends though. Friends who drop everything to come hold my baby because I am weeping and haven’t had a break all day. Friends who let me call and feel sorry for myself for an hour even though they have better things to do. Friends who take my child to school, bring me snacks, and call just to check-in. I love those friends.
And I love our family. I didn’t grow up surrounded by grandparents, so becoming a part of Lofton’s family was a little overwhelming for me. But I am oh so grateful to have them close. Sally spent the night with me when Reese was sick so I could finally get some sleep and sweet Mamie and Paw Paw came to keep Reese when Lofton and I both had to work. Thank you, thank you, thank you wonderful family.
And life lesson number four….
I am richly blessed to be Reese’s mama. Rain or sunshine, good day or bad, this baby of mine is life’s greatest blessing. He is an everyday reminder of how lucky I am. Sick or well he illuminates a room with his smile and personality. Getting to watch him grow is a gift that I too often take for granted. I have a new resolve to soak in every moment of this time in his life. No more whining about things we can’t change and people we can’t change. The Beasley family is now going to focus on the now.
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