AJ and a LATTE

I always knew the day would come when I would have to truly embrace changes in my life, but never was I prepared to do it all at once!  It has been a minute since I’ve blogged so there is a lot of life to cram into a few paltry paragraphs. In the words of Julie Andrews in The Sounds of Music, let’s start at the very beginning…it’s a very fine place to start.

At the beginning of the 2024-2025 school year I came to the realization that it was time to pass the torch in my little corner of the world.  Both my body and my mind were so tired and the kiddos were feeling (and to an extent demonstrating) my fatigue.  I knew it was time for a change and I trusted that God would lay the groundwork for “something” to happen.  Boy, did He ever come through!!!  In a box with a big red bow, well, blue and gold bow, God delivered my next adventure. The administrative assistant in the School of Creative Arts at Wayland decided to retire and move to Tucson to be with family.  She agreed to work part time until her replacement was chosen.  I was a perfect fit for what the school was looking for, but I had to finish my teaching commitment.  This angel decided to work part time remotely until the end of the school year.  Tobie, one of my two God-sanctioned adopt-a-daughters, would be graduating from Tech at the end of the spring semester and would be needing a job…in elementary music! I officially start my new position tomorrow, June 2, 2025.  Man’s hands could not create a more perfect scenario.  I always thought that I wanted to be a secretary (now the politically correct term is administrative assistant) when I retired.  God allowed it to be so.  There is a lot to the job I don’t know yet, but it is right in my wheelhouse.  Much left to learn, but I still get to love on kids, I get to organize and plan, and I’ll get to feed my secret love for paperwork and excel files!

There were some moments of uncertainty amidst the revelry of impending retirement as well.  The day after Christmas my daddy was admitted into the hospital with several life threatening abscesses in his liver.  As the doctors were trying to navigate his treatment plan he caught the flu and developed pneumonia.  I spent several long days begging the Father to spare my dad’s life and to give me just one more day…one more day.  His hand was at work through ups and down, competence and extreme incompetence, poor decisions and wise direction.  Each time I felt my resolve slipping, God would throw me a carrot to remind me Who was actually my dad’s Great Physician.  Thirty one days after his admittance into the hospital, my dad entered inpatient rehab.  Two months and two moves later, he walked out of rehab using a walker.  It has been slow, but after weeks of outpatient physical therapy he is starting to tinker in the driveway and work on his truck.  Throughout it all, God held his path in the palm of His hand.  I give all glory to the One who chose to spare my dad.  Throughout the process he was loved on by his people and was blessed to see how many people really care for him.  I will never forget the day that I think God chose to turn things around.  I lay prostrate in the chapel of UMC begging for God’s mercies and His will to be done.  A nun approached me and prayed over me and my situation.  About 15 minutes after she left I actually felt God lift me to upright.  I knew it was time to go.  I went back to my dad’s room in ICU and the nurses told me the nun had just left.  It was then that my dad’s prognosis began to change.  No one will EVER be able to convince me that prayer does not change circumstances.  It saved my daddy for another day.

The last HUGE change is the impending marriage of my only child and his move to Temple, Texas.  I have prayed for Avery since we were blessed with our Keelan.  I didn’t know her name but I knew a young woman was being prepared to love my hot mess of a kid.  She is wonderful.  She loves him completely. She accepts his flaws and chooses him anyway.  She has expressed a desire not to take my son, but to become my daughter.  August 9 I will watch my baby vow his life to love another woman.  I will no longer hold the position of matriarch in his world; it will be his wife.  It is good and as it should be.  Genesis 2:24 is very clear in declaring that he shall make a life with his wife.  I’ll be back in the stands cheering him on with his new coach/trainer/partner.  Avery’s job is taking them to Temple.  They will begin their new life together without me there to swoop in and try to help.  It is as it should be.  It is good.  Yes, I am a struggling mama!  However, I know he has a good foundation and she is the helpmate God has chosen for Him.  Now they have to learn how to navigate life together.  Their leaving will be hard, but I am at peace.  I will be the proud mom in the stands cheering them on (probably silently wishing the coach would ask for my help) as they figure it out on their own.

Change…it’s hard. We all have to do it.  I never dreamed I would have so much at one time, but if I truly believe what I say, God’s timing is right and this change is all aligning this way for a reason. It will be good and there are many adventures to be had down new pathways that have been laid out before me. Change…it’s hard.  I am resilient.  Change…it’s hard.  His path is perfect.  Looks like it is time for some change.