As summer draws to a close and kids head back to school, I’m feeling bittersweet emotions. I’ve spent more time with the boys this summer than probably any summer before and yet somehow, it still doesn’t feel like enough.
I’m sad to see them go.
On the other hand, I’ve spent more time with them this summer than any other summer, AND we’re remodeling our house, which means there are many, MANY things to do and catch up on starting next week. So I’m excited to refocus my time back toward the things that have been on the back burner. I’m looking forward to making some space to create again.
I’m looking forward to space to breathe. . . alone.
But even as those words hit the page, it sends a chill up my spine and a dagger to my heart. I don’t want them to go. This summer has been amazing. Those boys are my life.
And yet, they aren’t.
They’ve been my life for the summer. They’ve had almost every drop of my time and energy, but where would I be if my entire life walked out that door to go to school for eight hours every day next week? Where would I be in eight years, when they walk out that door to start their own lives? Where would they be?
This is one of my favorite pictures of this entire 40th year of my life.
It tells such a beautiful story that you probably can’t see. It’s a trip I took, without my kids, with some of my closest friends and their husbands. It was so carefree and yet, so intentional. We laughed harder than I’ve laughed in a long time. We explored. We rested. We shared meals and long conversations. We opened our hearts and encouraged each other’s souls.
The entire trip, I couldn’t stop saying, “This is amazing”.
So much so that it became a running joke and a hashtag during the trip. I just couldn’t help it. I wanted to soak in every moment. I tried to capture the images, the feelings, the aromas, and all the memories in my mind. Aside from the fact that it was just overall a pretty perfect trip, I’d just come out of an extended season of soul-searching regarding the direction HeartStories with renewed sense of passion and focus around creating life-changing experiences for women. This trip?
It was solidifying my discoveries and my plan.
It was proving to me, in such a tangible way, the power of taking intentional time away from our individual responsibilities. No, it wasn’t just proving, it was blowing my mind. As women, we are wired to nurture our children and invest all the time with them that we possibly can.
We’re also wired to be nurtured.
We can take all the trips, eat all the fancy food, have all the fun and play in the sand all we want, but without time for reflection and space for connection, it simply won’t last. We’ll re-enter our lives with memories, but no lasting change. To make it truly amazing, to make it life-changing, we have to connect to our purpose . . . and to each other.
There is “amazing” to be found in every moment, if only you’ll look.
But it’s easy to miss without intentional, connected experiences to point it out. Only you can create space for more of that in your life.
It’s up to you to decide:
This is amazing.
to more love,
Crystal
Oh and P.S. My renewed focus & passion for creating experiences that connect women? That’s exactly where the Girl’s Night Out was born. And I’m SO excited about this next one September 1st. It is going to be #amazing!
