I’m traveling to New York this week with my husband and two teenagers for spring break. I love New York, the energy, history, food… I even love the subway. The last time we were there my children were small and we had a great time, but our trip this time will be much different now that our children are teenagers.
People always tell you when your kids are small to “cherish this time, it goes so fast.” They’re right. Two years. That is what we have left with our son before he spreads the wings we’ve so desperately worked to give him and flies to the great unknown to begin his life’s adventures. There’s so much I want to tell him. Things he needs to know to avoid pain, struggle…heartache. Yet those hard things build our character, develop grit, and create a person who can overcome the adversities life brings our way despite all attempts to avoid them. Parenting is such an interesting dichotomy between the heart and mind. It’s really all about legacy, pouring into him our values and convictions to help him be the person we wish we were. At work, I talk every day about death, the ultimate finish line. I think about it for my clients in a financial and legal sense, but my soul contemplates it on a much deeper level. Legacy extends so much further than a transfer of funds from one generation to the next. It’s the fingerprints we press into the minds and hearts of persons with whom we come in contact each day and those entrusted to our care. What is the legacy I want to leave to my children? How am I doing that? Are they learning who and what to be from me, or are they learning life lessons from the confused voices of their friends or the small device that commands so much of their time? These are the things I ponder as the sands slip quickly through the hourglass. So today, as we fly out to New York City, I will live in the moment, savor the experience, toss off frustration, and try to insert moments of teaching, leading by example with fun, patience, grace, and love. A small part of the legacy I want to leave…
