Savor

I heard a phrase this week that I fell in love with.  A mom went to the symphony with her daughter and while her daughter was soaking in the music she said that she took a picture of her with her heart.  She didn’t pull out the camera or her phone, she just looked at her daughter and soaked in the love that she felt for her.

I think this describes what I think of as “savoring.”  Savoring, according to google, is “taste (good food or drink) and enjoy it completely.”  I don’t know if it’s because I have had my last child, or if it’s because I’m older, or because I have kids that have grown and gone before I could blink, but I find myself savoring my children more.

When I had arms filled with children as a young, new mom, people would stop me and tell me to enjoy it while it lasts because they grow up so fast.  Logically, I knew that it was true; it seemed like my older children were growing faster than I could keep up with, but I didn’t know what it meant to truly enjoy those years.

It takes slowing down, and it takes practice.  What do you need to do to savor your children?  Would it be setting a reminder/alert on your phone to stop occasionally and feel and enjoy the love you have for them completely? Is there something you do together that you can make a conscious effort to just feel that love in that moment?  Really, they don’t have to even be around.  When you pray for each of them, individually, could you stop and hold them in your mind?  I’ve thought of gathering a baby picture (with their current one) and keeping them with me.

Those anonymous moms in the grocery store were all right, it does go too fast.  We need to learn to enjoy these years.