A Nod to Me, Transitions, and My Daughter

I know, I know.  There are so many things wrong with this.  I do realize how inappropriate it is.  A friend posted this on facebook and I did not repost it, so as not to offend the sensibilities of other family and friends. 

On my favorite mornings, I go to Starbucks with no agenda, grab a cup of coffee, and peruse some blogs.  Sometimes I read comments and click on a new website and an entire new world opens up.  Today I skimmed Renegade Conversations and found this quote: 

"Just being yourself, being who you are, is a successful rebellion."
(Author Unknown)

This can be tricky for me because I have so many selves, so many different parts of me that are becoming more and more compartmentalized.  I can be outgoing and chatty, or I can be silent, introspective and removed.  I can be very productive in many things, and I can sit in front of the computer and accomplish nothing.  I can be funny, but not on demand.  I can be the mother everyone wishes they were, but I can’t sustain it for 24/7. 

I haven’t posted in a couple of weeks; I guess I decided I was taking a September Break.  I have been busy with all September brings, and each year it hits me like a ton of bricks because I always forget the effort that merging into a new routine involves. I recently read something that stuck with me.  I can’t seem to find it again, but it was about transitional times.  I think the writing was referring to bigger transitions than just back to school, but I went with it.  The gist of it was..... just roll with it, don’t rush it.  So often, this time of year, I hear from parents, friends, teachers, administrators... to just get in a routine, settle in, and let’s move on. This piece said to honor the transitional time for what it is.  A chance to stretch and learn. 

So, I haven’t posted because I have been embracing the transition.  Our lives are not perfect and frankly, far from what we want them to be like.  However, I think our Take Back My Family project is starting to pay off.  I wanted to be able to quantify our changes and maybe I will do that again in the future.  For now, we feel better.  The energy is better in our house.  I am laughing with my husband more. The kids are playing together more and not as harried.  

I am honoring the juxtaposition that we were swimming in the lake last weekend to cool off, and last night I was covering our tomato and cucumber plants  to protect them from the freeze.  

I am also constantly awed, amazed and enamored with the educational challenges that my daughter must endure due to her dyslexia, as compared to my relatively easy flight through the schooling of my youth. 

So, the inappropriate photo above is a nod to me, transitions, and my daughter.  It is my more irreverent self that is rarely expressed here. It is a nod to timeless transitions ,whether they  are seasonal, or once in a lifetime.  It is a nod to my daughter, who fights daily for things that I never had to work for and never appreciated.