It seemed so far away.
Eight years ago, when our first “ours baby” was born, I remember thinking that some day WAY in the future, when she turned eight years old, my stepkids — her older brother and sister — would be out of the house.
Someday way in the future, they’d probably be in college somewhere and she’d become the oldest kid at home.
Recently we stopped and visited my stepson at his college on our way home from a road trip.
He proudly walked us around his campus; he showed us his dorm, his classrooms, his on-campus job. He told us about professors, the other students, college life in general.
All grown up.
On our wedding day, almost 10 years ago, on that mild day in the middle of May, my 9-year old stepson dragged his feet down the aisle.
He begrudgingly held the rings with a scowl on his face. He didn’t want to be there.
Then, as a teenager, he challenged my authority, my very presence in his life. He didn’t want me to be there.
I did the best I could with what I had.
Would I ever have imagined?
Would I ever have imagined that years later, he’d pull me aside and say he was sorry for rejecting me all those years; for fighting with me and disrespecting me?
Would I ever have imagined that I would be sad to see him go? Or that he would say, “Love you!”
Last weekend, as he stood there waving until he couldn’t see us anymore, tears stung my eyes. Would I have ever expected that goodbyes would feel that way?
All those years ago, in the thick of raising my stepkids, sometimes the days felt very long.
Some of those long days were riddled with thoughts that things would never get better.
And yet, it was the investments.
I wasn’t investing in an ornery little boy, I was investing in a future young man. We were investing in a future college student, a future professional, a future husband, a future wife, a future father and mother.
And you? You are investing in a future man or woman with their own life and their own relationships, jobs, homes, kids.
When things get tough, remember, today won’t last forever.
You are putting coins in the piggy bank of that young life — you’re making investments every single day. You have no idea what will come of those investments but it could be amazing.
And someday, YOUR undeniable stamp will be on that young man or woman.
Just like my stepson, your child or stepchild will think back and remember you. They’ll remember you for that time you spent together, for the way you made her feel when she were scared or hurting. Or when he was arrogant and you responded with grace.
They’ll remember how you didn’t give up.
Someday, somehow, you’ll all forget the bad days and you’ll cherish the good ones because life just goes by so fast.
Before you know it, they’re all grown up and not there anymore. But you’ll know that you did the very best you could with what you had.
And that your investment mattered.
