It’s the last day of school for my boys.
Part of me is saying “Finally!” but a bigger part is saying “Wait! Don’t move. Don’t move forward and get bigger! Stay here, in this moment.”
I actually asked my youngest twin last night if he wouldn’t mind staying in kinder for another year or so. He had come into the kitchen and begged me to pick him up and carry him. I folded his skinny arms and legs around me and hugged him tight. “Just one more year?” He laughed and shook his head but also solemnly asked me why. “I don’t know,” I said, “Because you are just filled right now with so much light right now.”
I’ve noticed that this year. No matter what they were asked to do or asked to miss out on, no matter what challenges they faced, these three never stopped bouncing back and shining like the sun. I love to see their faces reflect the light they are when they get excited about the littlest things. “Mom, we had a DJ today and the sound was so loud made my tummy rumble,” one said yesterday with wonder shining in his eyes.
I want to capture that light, that wonder.
And hold onto it a little longer.
But I also have to remember that we are all light at every stage of our lives, not just when we are young and cute. We are, as Jesus noted in the Gospels “the light of the world” all the time. No matter what happens… we still shine. And those around us shine too. We just have to keep looking for it.
This quote by Fr. Greg Boyle, SJ is my prayer this morning. I hope it helps you shine today.
“Jesus says, ‘You are the light of the world.’ I like even more what Jesus doesn’t say. He does not say, ‘One day, if you are more perfect and try really hard, you’ll be light.’ He doesn’t say, ‘If you play by the rules, cross your T’s and dot your I’s, then maybe you’ll become light.’
No. He says, straight out, ‘You are light.’ It is the truth of who you are, waiting only for you to discover it. So, for God’s sake, don’t move. No need to contort yourself to be anything other than who you are.”
