The Beauty of Blindness to the Future

O Blindness to the future kindly given that each may fill the circle marked by Heaven.  Abigail Adams

When my son David was born, I longed to know what he was meant to do in life.  I reasoned that, if I knew, I could guide and direct him, making sure he gets 'what he was meant to do' done.

I still wish I knew some days...

Photo of David, courtesy LaNola Kathleen Stone

But most days, I'm grateful to be blind to the future.  I can then focus on David's journey, trusting that he will 'fill his circle marked by Heaven'...

...And simply be happy he was born.
And that I get to be his mother.

This post is dedicated to my son David on his 13th birthday.

Comments

[julia]

I think the best advise kids (or anyone) can be given is to figure out what God wants them to do - that circle marked by Heaven. Great tribute Whitney!

[Bonnie Tonita White]

I have found that relinquishing my expectations of my children has been much harder than I would have liked but has been the best gift I could give them.

[Chrysula Winegar]

My son turns 3 today. In concert with this, your blog and Debra's post on women and power and childbirth, I'm also working on something on my blog in honor of my little one's birthday.

Interesting that the 10 year age gap between our sons doesn't really make any difference when it comes to these fundamental questions a mother asks about her child. Beautiful Whitney. As always. Happy Birthday David.

[positively present]

What a wonderful post! Today's my birthday as well. :) Seems like it's a popular b-day.

[Jenny]

OH! A teenager! Wow.
He's an amazing boy.
And he makes me laugh.
(What a great picture!)
Happy Birthing day to you, Whitney!
XO

[Amy Jo]

We're glad he was born as well. He's a great kid. My boys thoroughly enjoyed him at scout camp last year. First borns are wonderful.

[Rebecca]

Beautiful tribute, Whitney. You're a wonderful mother!

[Janna]

You touch on the idea of relishing the journey instead of overly focusing on the goal/end - I like that, and it's something I don't do well!

This past week, I spent several hours feeding and burping my friend's 10 week old triplets. I loved the rhythm of the process, and felt very relaxed the entire time. Staying centered on the baby's immediate need, the "now," was a sort of meditation.

Such a different perspective than the goal, the bottom line, the outcome.

[Brillig]

Beautiful post, beautiful photo. I'm here via Novembrance/Luisa, and I'm glad I read this one. I'm looking into the future blindly too, and I love the way you put this.

[Bonnie Tonita White]

Sometimes when I read this post Whitney, I feel like everyone's painting in full color and I am still in black and white. So much knowledge and learning. So many enriched lives. Not that mine is impoverished but at the same time it seems like my bandwidth isn't as broad as others because I don't have all the channels wide open. I am nibbling on information rather than feasting.
As an educator it has been really interesting to see how we made great efforts and strides to encourage girls academically and found ways to empower them. Sadly our boys have nobody to advocate for them - it is assumed like I suppose we assume about the silent majority that they are strong enough on their own. Clearly they are not. How do we balance the power?
I love how men "get'er done". They plough through things whether it's shopping for a sweater or planning an event or writing a case. They enjoy the accomplishment more than we do. They are satisfied with results while we rehash and try to figure out how we could do it better. And really watching a bunch of teenage boys hang out is pure joy to me. There is no pretense - they are real, uncensored, without masks.
The more I get to know you and what you are capable of, I am humbled that some of that light sheds on me.