A Moment

A moment is all it takes. One moment, and your world can completely be turned upside down. A sunny, crisp, early morning one week ago today, I was out watering our front yard. As I was watering and keeping an eye on Judah, to be sure he didn't rip out one of my newly planted flowers, or dart off to where he knows he's not supposed to go, I mindlessly gave our thirsty lantana a drink. Sirens abruptly cut through the still morning air. I quickly prayed for whoever it was that they were going to help, then went back to mindlessly watering. Then there were more sirens...and more sirens... then more. I realized this was not a normal Green Valley call, but one where something more serious had happened and someone really needed help. I prayed more, yet went about my day as normal. Only later did I come to find out that a 15 year old boy had been hit by a car not far behind our house, and later passed away. Knowing of this sad event, that happened oh so close to home, has made me reflect on the abruptness of life. Before I heard those sirens, many lives were going about their daily lives, thinking of nothing other than what the days events might hold. Among other flitting thoughts I was thinking about the dirty dishes in my sink, the trim that needs painting, and the library books that needed to be returned. That young boy on the bicycle, was no doubt thinking about all the things he still wanted to do before school starts again; his mother waiting for him to return so she could stop worrying about him being on his bike. And the woman driving, thinking about her grocery list that she had forgotten at home. No one was concerned with monumental thoughts. No one was thinking about life or death. No one was thinking about eternity.  Everything changed in that moment. I can only cry thinking about the call his poor parents received, the worst nightmare becoming reality. The woman who'd been driving, crying on the side of the road. Lives forever altered... all while I was out watering my plants. I feel guilty that I was so able to continue about my daily life so quickly after hearing those sirens last week. So, I'm determined to make a change. A change in me. To make moments MATTER. To realize that we don't know when those sirens will sounds. That moments can matter in the day to day. That while waiting for my hubby's car to pull up in the driveway in the evening IS a wonderful moment, that there can be MANY wonderful moments in between. Not just here at home with my babies (they make it easy to see that time is passing too quickly and needs to be appreciated😢 ). But with others outside of my home as well. I am determined to not be the mom looking at her phone at the park, but the one engaged in conversation while pushing the swing. Not the one too stressed at the store to stop and let someone pass, but the one to share a smile. Not the one rushing to get dinner on the table, but the one saying THANK YOU to the Dairy Queen drive-thru person as we splurge and do backwards dinner day(ice cream before "real" food). I want to be the one to make others realize that EVERY MOMENT counts. Those sirens could be coming for me or a loved one at any moment. And RATHER than be consumed by fear, like I usually am, I have decided that enough is enough. I WILL rely on God to protect me. As I read in my devotions this morning, Proverbs 3:25-26, "Do not be afraid of sudden terror, when it comes, for the Lord will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being caught."   When it comes. That spoke to me. Things will happen. Yet, through it all HE will be there and be my CONFIDENCE and HELP me! So, in the mean time, I DO NOT HAVE TO WORRY! I will no longer be the worrier, or the one mindlessly scrolling through social media to keep me from worrying about what is going on right in front of me. Nope. I will be the mom out there, the one smiling more, worshiping louder, playing harder, writing more, making more memories... because I do not know what tomorrows moments hold.