Wednesday, February 9, 2011

365 Days, Day 246


Your children are not your children.

They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.

They come through you but not from you,

And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.


You may give them your love but not your thoughts,

For they have their own thoughts.


You may house their bodies but not their souls,

For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.


You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.

For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.

The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, and He bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far.

Let our bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;

For even as He loves the arrow that flies, so He loves also the bow that is stable.

Kahlil Gibran (1883 - 1931)

I love having my house (almost) full again: having AriƩl, Kyle and Sarah here is wonderful. I hope that they see our home as a little port where they can anchor anytime they need to. I am longing for Roarke and Gina to be here too.

My fortune cookie wisdom for today says: “You are free to invent your life*. I have had to, and am still re-inventing myself. No longer can I identify who I am through my children – I am no longer MOM. I have housed their bodies, now their souls are out there in the house of tomorrow. They have been sent forth as living arrows on their own path.

I just enjoy the moments when the little arrows find their way back to us, even for a while.

Stay as long as you like little arrows; stay as long as you need. But go forth when you are ready: we will always be here for when you may need or want to return. I love you my little children.

*How would I [re-]invent my life…? I will have to give this some thought… am a bit too tired to think now - did a day of teaching (= a day of smiling and being friendly and positive and encouraging in the faces of adversity). I can walk away from my day knowing I gave it my best and did all I could to create a positive learning space for the little darlings.

Am rambling a bit now, but have just seen two themes for art project: Notorious and Letters and Symbols. I like this, feel inspired. Tomorrow (if I don’t have a teaching day, I will start on this in my journal…) Feel inspired.

No comments:

Post a Comment