The joy of witnessing your children, and children of your heart, grow into amazing adults! Part Two.

SORRY THIS IS LATE! I HAVE BEEN NAVIGATING TIME ZONES

AND THIS SLIPPED THROUGH!!!

There was a time when I thought I would never be able to have children. I grieved that loss. Got into counseling to process the loss. It took a while to grieve the loss of what could be. And then I moved forward.

I invested in other children, nieces, nephews, and kids along the way that simply grew in my heart. They blessed and helped shape me, even as I invested and helped shape them. And then amazingly, our two children were born. I can still hear their first sounds in the delivery room. Oh how grateful I am for them. I love them beyond words.

As the years have passed, still others have come into our lives that feel like part of our ongoing family. Creation is not stagnant, but an everflowing river. That is part of what we have been celebrating in our 'epic trip' west!

This next leg of our journey was visiting our son in the incredibly beautiful Plumas County of northern California, as well as visiting other "children of my heart". Truly, this woman's heart is just full. Being with younger people that we have loved for well over half our lives, were moments of reminiscing, forward envisioning, and blessings in the present! There were beautiful stops before leaving the USA for New Zealand, and continuing family connecting.

During these powerful moments in connecting, I have had opportunity to reflect on how all of our lives could be so different, had we made other choices. Always we have choice. We do not need to stay stuck. We can choose to reflect, refine, regroup or release. Truly each of us has the power of choice. I believe that is the free will we were created to make. And yet, we are frightened sometimes to do the work that sets free will into a healthy movement. While there is no guarantee of the outcome, our choice is always ours to make.

One of the things I know to be true in life is that all of us make choices that do not always work well for us. We make decisions based on knowledge we believe is true, and only later learn it was incorrect. And then we have a choice to make. As we age and grow, so does our ability to discern increase. We learn more about how to hold onto healthy relationships, and also how to let go of unhealthy ones. Some decisions can be refined, others need to be discarded, lessons learned, and life, full life, can then be enhanced. We are wonderfully made!

How grateful I am for the strength of the human spirit which, when allowed to be heard inside of us, ever seeks life....and abundant life. This kind of spirit does not settle for just getting through life. Rather, spirit seeks to life fully and abundantly.

Our journey west was an experience of encountering growth...hard earned, well-discerned growth, from our loved ones. As I age, I simply cherish and celebrate these core values as I experience them in myself and others. Especially my children and 'children of my heart'.

There is so much to be afraid of in our current society and country. Many of the decisions which are shaping our country are concerning. As they should be. Whenever our government makes decisions that impact the lives of others, they should be questioned and discerned. It is the same as with an individual. Whenever we make decisions as individuals, as families, others are impacted. We simply do not live in a vacuum. We are interconnected.

My decisions, my actions DO impact others. Some more potently than others. It behooves me, and you, and leaders across our land, to be sensitive to both our inner voices/ our inner truths/ AND how our behavior/decisions impact the lives of others.

As you read this blog, think of your own life and decisions. Certainly, you also have made choices that you have learned from and moved forward in a different way. Certainly, you have made choices that you have regretted. Hopefully you have learned from them in a way that is helpful to others, as well as yourself.

During the days of our western USA trip, we simply could celebrate health in the lives of our family. That health has been hard won! We have each done the internal work that hones our inner lives and external lives. Our family is one that is pretty open and transparent with each other. I am aware that not all families operate in the same way. However we operate, I hope we re able to at least know and experience the movement of those we love. It can be precious.