Each year when spring starts to show its face I think, crap. Why? Because I have serious allergies, the weather behaves like a manic-depressive, and it reminds me of mud. Rain plus the leftover deadness of winter. I love the snow in winter and around D.C. I always feel like we didn’t get enough. (With the exception of the 2009/2010 winter.) I love summer when it’s warm enough for the beach and the fall feels so good and is so pretty.

Poor spring. I’m hard on you but there are days when you prove to be so lovely and so uplifting that we can’t help but say you are beautiful. Today I walked the dog and felt the cool sun on my face. Last weekend I hiked through a park with my family and the dogs. It’s a time of newness when we watch as things grow and bloom all around us.

I was thinking of all this because of my nephews. They are just the sweetest boys. They are still kind of little but growing up fast. I love visiting with all of the family to see how all of the kids are growing and blooming. Even my neighbors and friends kids are delightful. Another year, more new skills, and the things that come out of their mouths just make you smile. It’s that same feeling of spring. I don’t want to leave the last season but a little reminder of something new makes you enjoy where you are and what you are doing.

So last weekend my nephew Harmon said something to me that made my heart grow a few inches. I was telling my brother that I might want to hire the girls (my nieces) to come down and help me with some landscaping work on my house. Harmon asked if he could come and I told him that he was too little but that in about ten years he would be my go-to guy. “What’s that?” he asked. “It means when I’m old and need help with heavy stuff, I’ll call on you,” I replied. And then Harmon said, “Oh, okay. Well, I’ll come down and help you and you don’t even have to pay me.”Love it. Love him. All those years of presents and trips have paid off. I’ve got my ticket now and am no longer worried about my old age. My nephews are going to have my back. Awesome.

But for now I am going to enjoy the fact that they are still little. Harmon and Tyler, we can linger a little longer in this season—you don’t have to grow up too fast.

I am blessed.

Discipline your son, and he will give you rest; he will give delight to your heart.
(Proverbs 29:17 ESV)

Advertisement