Fall and Creativity.

This fall feels so different than last.  Last year I was, admittedly, a bit on the side of crazy.  I can't even tell you how many lists, plans, schedules, and calendars I had going at once.  I was just so insistent on everything being perfect before Betsy Grace arrived.  And she arrived and things weren't perfect and I spent far too much time being bent out of shape about it. 

And then came spring...and summer.....and as the months went along and Miss Perfect tried to inhabit my body I found myself firmly saying "no thank-you" to her insistent demands and wishes.  The sun felt brighter, the play-more fun.  The lists-still there, but shorter.  And more meaningful.  

And then along came autumn.  This precious, gift of autumn. 

Something I've been teaching the girls over and over about the last few months is how the seasons change.  It's a fascinating lesson and I've never realized it more than now.  We've been fully embracing the fact that different times of the year bring different foods, activities, clothes, scents, sights, and sounds.  How creative is that? What a rich life we are served.  

And so, just like the changing of seasons our family has weathered the winter.  We've been through the chilled to the bone, barely making it but still hanging on months.  We've been sad and frightened when Betsy Grace was so teeny tiny.  We've adjusted to two and watched as Anna Ruth discovered what it was like to have a sister in the family.   We've juggled things harder than we thought we could balance.  

But now, we've come through on the other side.  A year later, a lot lighter.  

This particular afternoon I taught Anna Ruth how the leaves on the trees change colors, and then fall off the tree, leaving the tree bare during winter.  We have changed tremendously as a family, seen old thoughts, visions, dreams, and routines fall to the ground, much like these leaves.

This year I'm happy to see the vibrant colors showing up outside our window and in our hearts.  To be ready and willing for God to paint the leaves of our lives a beautiful shade, to share the goodness of God with others. 

Dear autumn, you are heaven on earth this year.  You are tummies full, hearts fuller.  Colorful sights, testimonies of God's goodness.