This Season of Life

I've heard people talk about the different seasons of their lives. I've been thinking about that lately. I have to admit I only remember older people talking about the seasons of their lives. I don't think you recognize seasons when you are young, at least not any other than spring, summer, fall, & winter. Maybe the seasons of life are something you look back on.

Even the Bible says there are seasons, a time for everything.

"There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace. "
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

I know that Andrew and I are in a season. It's a season that requires us to spend a lot of time apart. Right now he has to be gone two weeks out of the month every month until the end of the year. It's a time when I am completely busy with school. I gave up my prep recently and now teach 7 classes a day without a break other than lunch.

But it's just a season.

I have to say that in a way, I'm loving this season. Through it, I'm watching my marriage grow stronger every day. When you only have two weeks together each month, you want to make the most of time. We don't argue over silly things like where or what to eat. I find that we are both a lot less selfish in this season. We both seem to be very focused on each other and what the other one needs instead of our own needs. We laugh, we talk, and we just have fun together.

Not that our marriage was in the pits before, but it is just so much sweeter now. It is one of those things that I can't really put into words. I just so LOVE our time together lately, more than I ever have.

In fact our marriage is so much sweeter now, that I'm finding myself thankful that the Lord hasn't seen fit to give us children yet. When I look at what we would have brought our children into as opposed to what we will bring them into... I choose the future every time.

Sunday I jokingly said to Andrew it shouldn't matter to him if we have kids now because he is never home anyway. He just looked at me and said, "Exactly! I want to be home when we have kids."

Um wow....how has it never dawned on me that I would be alone more often than not with our child if we had one now. Thank you Jesus for knowing better than I do.

This little epiphany was intensified last night. I was grading a HUGE stack of papers. In fact I graded from 5:30 to 9:00 nonstop last night and didn't finish, but that's beside the point. Liam, being the easy dog that he is, was asleep and oblivious to the world. Liberty, though, was by my side crying because I wasn't paying any attention to her. She wanted to play fetch, but I didn't have the time. I can ignore my dog fairly easy and with only a small amount of guilt. But I just sat there thinking...what if I had a baby right now? Andrew is gone. I had a TON of stuff to do. And if I had a baby to take care of..... I would probably have lost it.

Again...God's ways are higher than my ways. For that I'm so thankful.


So we're in this season... a season of time apart, long hours, and no babies.

A season that I'm enjoying.... a season that I'm thankful for.... a season God knows we needed....a season that is making us stronger as husband and wife....a season that I wouldn't trade for anything.