"Turn Around"

The title of this post refers to a '60's song lyric that seems appropriate to my state of mind these days.  Yes, it's been over two months since I last wrote in here, but I can justify that absence in the next few paragraphs, I believe.  And some of the words of that touching song I keep hearing say it much better than I: "Turn around and you're tiny, turn around and you're grown...."

My focus, my energies, and my good excuse for not writing seem to center around my children and theirs. First, there was the trip, with our two teen-age grandsons, to Walt Disney World in Florida (anticipated in a June post).  A glorious ten days that created lifelong memories for all four of us, as we were re-introduced to a place my husband and I called home for almost two decades.  Second, we have watched our son perform in two stage productions that never fail to have us saying, "I can't believe that talented man is our son!"  Third, I spent ten days in Wisconsin, again with our older grandsons, that allowed their mother and her significant other to vacation, and allowed me a unique way of enjoying teen-age perspectives, as well as seeing our daughter renewed by her respite.  Lastly, I am now getting one day a week with our youngest grandson - an "old soul" at five-and-a-half - who gives me a few hours of energizing escapism.

True; I've not written anything new recently.  I have been working on the editing of my first novel, which is  nearing completion, and hope to see it published in the next few months.  And, in re-reading some of my last posts here, I'm confident that my attitude about writing hasn't changed.  In my May 21st post, I reflected that nothing worth doing is easy.  On May 30th, I resolved that I would never stop pursuing new things.  Both thoughts remain true.  I've just detoured to gain a new way of seeing.  And that "new way" has evolved because of what I've gained from my children and grandchildren.

I won't bore you with all the mental paths I took during this period.  I'll just say that the happy consequence of my recent experiences, and the time luxury I had to reflect, is the jist of all this.  I am now beginning to enjoy a much more relaxed approach to all avenues of my life.  Author John Milton's quote resonates with me now: "Reflection is wisdom's best nurse."  I don't feel I've lost anything; just the opposite.  I'm taking much more notice of the so-called simple pleasures, and it affects how I'm living each day.  It may mean less writing output per week but what does get onto the page will be the better for it.