One of my favorite things to do that provides me with peace and serenity is taking long walks on the beach.

All the five senses in my body are revitalized by feeling the sand in between my toes as I listen to the waves gently rolling ashore, tasting the salty air as I look for treasures along the way and celebrate the feeling of just being alive.

I recently traveled to Florida and had a few days before my husband and two children came down for Easter. This time alone was such a gift! 

Solitude is something I cherish and feel it is necessary for me to reconnect with myself. Our family has so many wonderful memories going to the beach and I had time to reflect on how much my life has changed.

My children are grown adults now and I was looking forward to spending time with them which is pretty rare these days, my heart swelled with gratitude. 

When they were young we would pretend our walks along the beach were a scavenger hunt, discovering the gifts we would find from the sea especially if it was an “eye” shell or a heart rock!

Fifteen years ago, my father came to visit us for Easter. My mom had recently passed away and he came along on one of our walks and he found his first “eye” shell!

I told him it was mom looking over him and he seemed to take comfort in the gift he had just found. 

My father has since passed, so what was very special for me during this last trip was when we were at the beach again on Easter Sunday we found over TEN “eye” shells… WOW! 

So many gifts from the sea! 

I don’t take these moments for granted, as we all know life is always changing we miss our loved ones that are no longer with us we wish things could remain the same but the truth is life is a process, movement, and transformation.

We “can’t hold back the dawn.” Change is the only thing we can count on for sure. It is wonderful to reminisce about how things used to be, but the most important thing to remember is to live in the present! 

Ask yourself the question: What do I want to celebrate? 

I wanted to celebrate the time I was having with my kids right now!

Life is about figuring out what to hold on to and what to let go of. There is NO way we are able to change or relive the past, but we are free to create the life we want for ourselves right this very moment…

Ask yourself: What do I  need to let go?  

I truly enjoy being with my adult children, they still need me, but in a different way.

I cherish our time together and realize even though our lives are constantly changing.

But, the one thing that will never change…. is the most precious gift they have given to me is being able to be called “Mom.”

On April 30, 2019   /   Empty Nest, Letting Go, Serenity   /   Leave a comment