Milestones

2011 was a milestone year for our family. Within days of graduation, our middle, Jordan's high school baseball team made small town history by placing 3rd in the state baseball finals. 

Ryne, our youngest, became a teen and although since his promotion to middle school he has been committed to to passing his eldest brother in the birth order line - up, Corey remains equally dedicated to maintaining his status. This is a sibling  phenomenon that continues to mystify me as once Jordan passed Corey is size he rather naturally recognized him as his *big* brother. Not so easy for our Rye, at almost 5'10" he now towers over his 5'2" (big) brother, who still prefers a relaxing afternoon of Disney movies to matters more typical of an "average" twenty-three year old, and yet we continue to hear an almost daily profession from Corey that he is "the boss". At this stage in the game I'm beginning to wonder if even once he reaches 6'2" whether Ryne will remain, the "baby" brother.         

Our eldest and only daughter, Chelsea, was walked down the isle by a very proud papa and brother in 2011. Her husband, Scott, has been a part of our family for several years now and we've known he was a keeper from the moment they met, but he truly stole her father's and my hearts when we found him sitting on our front porch waiting for our return one stormy July night, more than a year before their wedding. It was on this night that he asked our permission to marry our girl. If there's anyone out there who doubts the survival of chivalry in the present, I can assure you it continues on in the heart of our soft spoken son-in-law.
   

In the past year Jake and I have looked on as one of our brood shifted to her adult life with her soul-mate; another marched confidently down the isle, leaving childhood behind as he graduated from high school and transitioned on to college; and our baby became a teen. Corey has waited patiently, unwavering in his goals, those that he so confidently professed over four years ago to a team of educators who were less than convinced of the possibility of their reality.

I would be lying if I finished this post by telling you that I share his confidence in our success. It's more than just a little intimidating for me to think that we've arrived at the next chapter in our lives. I've wavered back and forth over the course of the past year, searching for answers to my questions of how he (we) will realize those goals on more than just a superficial level. Each time I veer from the initial course I find myself  quietly shepherded back by forces beyond my understanding. 





More recently, my eldest son came to me anxious that I understand what had been wearing on his mind. It's not unusual on those occasions where he's obsessing about his agenda for the day that his words tumble out, the same sentence repeated over and over until I hit on precisely the answer he's looking for. On this day his concerns were far from our ordinary discussions of saddling zebras and searching for his favorite video that has disappeared from iTunes.


On this day what was on his mind came out with a clarity that could not be misunderstood. "What are we doing next Mom?" I answered him with a basic mom-like response ticking off a list of chores that I was determined be accomplished, brushing off his anxiousness for answers as ordinary to our routine. "What's next?" a common question in which the answer is needed to help him transition and maneuver through his day. 


His next utterance was not a question but instead a statement that was meant to be reckoned. "Listen to me. I've been waiting for you, Mom. I'm counting on you." No arguing there, he'd been waiting on me for four years. 


So, for those wondering "What are we doing next?" - We're gonna be farming. Not the half million dollar tractor and endless use of chemical kind of farming that has become common place in today's high tech world that we live in --  but a kinder, gentler to the earth and all who live there kind of farming that has been all but forgotten.       


It's time this "late bloomer" begin listening to the old soul she lives with. He's been patient long enough.