A Hug For My Heart

It seems like no matter how hard I may try, I can't stop the steady march of time. The days, months, even years are flying by. Clearly I can see it the most when I look at my kids...

My twelve year old is as tall as me. My baby is going to turn eleven next week. We do practically all of our shopping in the men's department. They're going to be seeing their first rated R movie this week. We recently gave away all of the Legos and action figures. They had no interest in seeing Wall-E. I was informed this week that "kid shampoo" is no longer needed; that Head and Shoulders would be just fine. Sigh.

I was pondering all of this when we were at the mall this morning: The boys and I were sitting on a couch in the middle of the mall, enjoying our Starbucks when we heard a little one somewhere yelling. Not the annoying kind of yelling, more like the "hey, I love the echo in here" yelling. Matthew thought it was silly and I explained to him how it's just a natural kid thing, that even he liked to do it at one point. So as we finished our drinks, I was reflecting on how things have changed in our house recently; how my boys are growing up.

After a few more minutes, we stood up to leave, tossed our empty glasses in the trash and headed out. All of a sudden, a felt a hand take mine as little fingers laced in between my own. Matthew was walking hand in hand with me as we made our way to the elevator.

It only lasted for a minute or two, and then he let go. I'm also reasonably certain that had we seen anyone we know, he'd have dropped my hand instantly. But for those few minutes, he was my little boy again.

Moments like that are coming fewer and farther apart; I know that I need to cherish them. Thank you, Lord, for sending a hug to my heart today. I needed it.