Empty Nest

Once my purpose was so clearly defined.



The day I learned that I was to become a mother I knew my purpose and I was so fulfilled.



For many years I got up every day and the needs of my family drove what I would do that day. Drop this one off, prepare meals, clean the house, pick someone up, watch a sports event, drive someone to a lesson or a friend’s home.



Busy, busy, busy and happy, happy, happy.



Then one day it stopped.



My girls drove themselves everywhere, and no longer played games but created happiness for themselves.



Rarely did they eat home, and my house no longer got messy because they weren’t here.



So, this was the chapter called empty nest.



I filled my days with creating, painting, and classes. I learned how to use a digital camera by taking skatey-eight photos and joining flickr. Occasionally I was needed, but rarely, and so I began to blog.



I created numerous blogs with my writing, artwork and this diary, A Scrapbook of Inspiration. I even created a blog just for Christmas, and wrote a book. Soon I met kindred spirits and was encouraged every day by beautiful words.



I wrote a story years ago for my girls and I published it on my Children’s Story Blog. The name of the story is The Thankful Coat. This morning I read:

“I will use this story with my blind primary age students next week, just before Thanksgiving. Instead of coloring our Thankful Coats, I will have several 'coats' cut from different types of fabric which students may glue to a piece of paper. I will also have an assortment of buttons for them to glue on.

So many times my students my students are pitied or looked down upon. This will help them look at their own 'gifts' and what they can be thankful for.”

Wow, I was blown away. To think, what if I had been like my Grandmother and waited for her children to come for Sunday dinner, and if we all didn’t she would sit in her chair and sulk for days.



What if I hadn’t tried to repurpose my life and share the stories I wrote for my two wonderful little girls, and instead sulked that they didn’t need me anymore?



I think whoever defined this chapter as “Empty Nest” was like my Grandmother.



I don’t think Grandma Moses was upset with the children being gone.



No, she just got out her paintbrushes and said “I think I will paint!”



I was so encouraged to think that my story will be used by this wonderful teacher to help her students think about being thankful.



This beautiful e-mail letting me know that I had received this comment, reminded me that God changes our life purpose every now and then.



Empty? I think not, my nest is full with the many friends that I have found blogging.



Full with old friends and new ones. My life is full knowing that my girls have learned to fly and although I can no longer sit on the sidelines, I certainly can enjoy the fact that they are enjoying their lives.



Empty Nest...our nest is only empty when we refuse to accept change. We can fill our familiar nest with new things, new reasons to be grateful, and reach new horizons along the way.



Perhaps God has to empty our nest at the proper time, so that He can fill it with new blessings.



The Song for this post is Karen's Theme.