Hello from Seoul, South Korea, friends!

Here with the family on a speaking (Hubs) and school project (Daughter) vacation; could not be more grateful. That we can take this trip all together, I could hand off patient care for a week with complete confidence, and we can spend these days in one another’s company relaxed and connecting for the first time abroad in two years—wow, what a privilege and a joy.

We have reconnected in quality time with one another and also with old friends from the kids’ grade school years. That was so special.

Last month I referenced the four thousand weeks of the average human lifespan. It’s the equivalent of 100 pregnancies. I just realized why that reframe hits such a soft spot right now. Pregnancy feels like forever, then it’s all but forgotten in the maelstrom of newborn care and raising children to adulthood. There is some math about the percentage of kids’ time spent in the home of their family of origin and how the vast majority of it has passed by the time they leave for college. It’s a duh-HA kind of calculation, one that makes perfect sense cognitively and also doesn’t hit a parent until the kid/s is/are actually flown and we realize how seldom we will actually see them hereafter.

It’s a natural order of things. Children grow up and separate from parents. And of course they can always come home, anytime for any reason. I have stuff to do that has waited for this season, yet part of me feels guilty for looking so giddily forward to it. I suppose it may just be the nature of parenting, this self- versus other- first ambivalence? Regardless, the relationship is unique and mundane, ordinary and sacred. What a privilege and challenge, an incredible journey.

With our second and last college launch only a few months away, revelations and insights about family, parenting, and relationships in general hit heavy and strong. I find myself slowing down, allowing the feels with more reverence than last time. I will cross this bridge in no rush. I will savor it more this time, pay more thoughtful attention.

This family trip feels different and special. How lovely. Signing off now from ‘the future,’ as my Aussie friend calls it. Ha. That feels appropriate for this unintentional precipice post. 😊