These are the Days They’ll Remember
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I know that there will come a day, Lord willing, when my children will look back on their childhood and remember.
They will remember big things like how mama’s attitude could make or break the atmosphere of the home – was she cheerful… or not. They will remember the ideas and ways of life that their parents taught for and against… and they’ll remember whether they were hypocrites in their own lives… or not.They’ll remember that without explanation or complaint their Daddy was always present – to guide, to answer tough questions, ever present in love and in teaching.
But they’ll also remember a million little details that will shape their character, their minds, and their lives. This is a heavy realization for me as I thumb through the catalog of my own childhood memories. I see how we are all shaped by these small details that add up to big ideas and the principles that guide our lives.
Will they remember the simple joys of hauling firewood, wet t-shirts on hot nights, and learning to go slow in the hot summer sun?
Will they remember the newness of coming here, the sadness of leaving those behind, and the "unconventional" months and years that were to come?
Will they remember walking down dirt roads at dusk, running freely through open land, and the unabashed joy written all over their face?
Will they remember the moments they first held her, watched her smile, helped her grow?
Will they remember endless blue skies, clotheslines blowing in the breeze, the rhythmic "tink" of fence-building?
Will they remember the way the waist-high flowering broomweed feels as they run through it, heads cocked back and laughter pouring joyously from their grins?
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Wake up just feet from one another. Feed the chickens. Breakfast. Feed baby sister a bottle. Haul firewood with Daddy. Inside chores with Mama. Help make lunch. School time. Watch your sister. Supper. Walk to the neighbors’ for two quarts of goat milk. Tickle fights. Wash up for bed time. Squeezes goodnight.
These are the kinds of days that they will remember.
Beautiful.
I had a similar moment earlier today. The sun is shining bright, a slight breeze keeping the burn off the skin. Coming home late from errands, decided to have school outside on a blanket during lunch. Kids loved it. Mama loved that the kids loved it and it brightened the whole day.
I hope they remember today.
I wonder about these things, too. My daughter is 15 and she tells me stories of the things she remembers from being small. It’s so cool how her stories of the same situation are shades different than mine. It’s also lovely how she remembers things that I’d forgotten about, things that were especially important to her that, to me, seem so insignificant.
Thank you for your beautiful blog. Blessings!
Wonderful post, so thought provoking.
We have just spent a week on holiday doing just what you describe but our usual week is more structured with groups to go to, visits with friends, time spent in the play park.
I know that this is the life that we have chosen and the situation we live in (we live in London, England) but I wish for my kids a simpler life, not just to have this for one week of holiday per year or when we visit our parents in the country.
I will keep reading your blog with joy to get ideas for change in our life.
What a beautiful post!! 🙂 It’s funny I just came across your site, my husband and I just returned from Tadoussac on the Saint Laurent (in QuĂ©bec) and passing our time there, we realized we would really like to live ”in the country”. Right now we live in a big city, but we know that for having a family in the near future we will want to be more sustainable and more at ease and in a home-home, some place with more community would be nice as well. We love being outside and we miss enjoying the trees and beautiful skies. Maybe after we graduate. We just got home and I’m already missing it, ha ha. Thank you for writing, it was very beautiful.