Skip to main content

The Challenge of Five


Living alone is easy. Add one more person to the equation and it becomes a bit more challenging – especially when that person is a 13 year old. But in time, we figured it out. Somewhere in there, Beatrice joined us. With Thanksgiving came the joy of the five of us together for the week.

And then reality set in as Tony and Sana began their trek back to New Hampshire. Our household of two was now a household of three as Sean made himself a home with us.  For the first five years of Sean’s life it was just he and I. How difficult could it be to have my 22-year-old son living with me again? A mother couldn’t ask for a better son. He is loving, kind, intelligent, and hard-working. He has grown into a fine young man who has lived on his own for the past three years. He has his own way of doing things.  I have my way of doing things. Needless to say, the two clash a bit. I tend to go with the flow and do things (supper, adventures, etc) as the mood strikes. He likes to plan everything under the sun including a specific arrangement of where things are located in the kitchen – oftentimes out of my reach. While I am reaching for things just out of grasp, Sean and Patti are working to determine how their relationship works under the same roof.

Just as we start to find a rhythm as a unit of three, Christmas  brought Tony and Sana back to us for two weeks. Laughter and screaming filled the air. Window shades opened at the first hint of sunlight (to take advantage of solar energy). Dishes overflowed in  the sink. Food gone in the blink of an eye. Sean asking each morning, “What’s the plan for today?” My quiet refuge turned into a three-ring circus.

Yesterday, we spent the day together going out to lupper (lunch and supper) and then to a movie. We sang in the car all the way to Raleigh. Tony and I showed affection to each other as the kids freaked out. A family reunited.  I went to bed with a good feeling inside.

When I awoke this morning, the challenge of five began anew. Five more days of the five of us together. Difficult? Yes. Worth it? For sure. 

Comments

  1. AnonymousDecember 28, 2010 at 7:54 PM

    oh how quite it will be when they are gone. but you will survive remembere spring break is coming and then summer. love all of you. Marguerite

    ReplyDelete
  2. James ADecember 29, 2010 at 11:33 AM

    Man! Does that ever sound exciting. Sounds a lot like home some years ago. Smiling for you all! Still very PROUD of you all. Dad/Grampa

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Hardest One Yet

 From the time I began this blog, I made the conscious choice that I would be honest and open in the moment – whatever is going on. For the most part, I have done that.  After struggling about whether to write about this particular challenge (let alone share it), I chose to do the uncomfortable and do both – write and share. “Your certification has not even been processed yet. Probably won’t happen until at least the middle of January.”  I took a deep breath as I heard those words a couple weeks ago and I realized what that meant. Christmas would look very different than originally planned. The retroactive pay that Santa was counting on to make the holiday something special for our family would not be coming. I took a deep breath as I hung up the phone and walked out of my classroom, despair bombarding the hope and excitement of the upcoming holiday. A tornado of thoughts began whirling in my head as I walked to the guidance office. Playing with our budget in my head trying to
7 comments
Read more

The Next Chapter Begins...

The first round of tears happened during the 8 th grade promotion. It has been such a wonderful year with all of them – 7 th and 8 th graders alike. The second round of tears came when I learned I do not have a contract for next year. I will not be returning to Benson Middle School unless the displaced teachers do not jump at the chance for my classroom.   Right after she told me, I did my best to remain professional and keep the tears at bay. Unfortunately, they came anyway. About the time the tears hit my eyes, an email a dear friend sent me when I first wrote about the contract situation came to mind: “There is always a reason for things. Maybe God wants you to move on and inspire other students.” I love what she says. I feel that with my whole being. However, it did not make hearing that I have no job any easier. So now what? I am floating off the edge again. My family began the year in two different states. We are reunited again in North Carolina. Both Tony and I with
7 comments
Read more

Aging sucks.....or does it?

Upon first thought, watching a parent age sucks. Unnoticeable at first. A bit of a stoop, some creaking in the knees, whitening of the hair. The doctor’s visits begin, as do the pills One for high blood pressure, another to thin the blood, and a handful of vitamins to top it off. The signs are there, but it is easier to see him as he has always been. My father, a pillar of strength. Until my pillar was knocked off-kilter. A simple surgery and the mortality of my father looked me square in the eye when the drugs took hold of his brain. Amidst his fidgeting and confusion, I realized…AGING SUCKS! And then….enlightenment dawned upon me….AGING IS BEAUTIFUL Wrinkles tell of smiles while silver hair speaks a life of memories. Knees creaky after years of kneeling in prayer, offering up a lap, and climbing up the stairs for one more kiss goodnight. Almost forty-eight years of memories nestled in my heart. Memories of my father. Taking us to church each Sunday Building and fixing
2 comments
Read more