This has been a week of reflection. Of endings and beginnings.
Of fire and renewal. Of partings and entries. A week of surprises and upsets
but at the end of this week and on this Saturday as I reflect, this week has
shown me that life is unpredictable, full of trials and tribulations and
endings but all to help us to build character, compassion and to learn about the
importance of living in the here and now.
It started with my niece entering the Miss Bermuda contest.
With all my sister-in-law’s family as well as mine gathering to cheer her on.
To see her sweep up the majority of the prizes but not the one she had her eyes
set on. But life was showing her that just because you don’t get to your
destination, the detour of gaining the other prizes was what she needed more
than the title. Disappointment for her but opportunity presenting itself in
another way.
On Tuesday lunchtime my husband and I went to the moving up ceremony
for our son who just ended his middle years at his school getting ready to enter
his senior years. The ceremony was short, sweet and poignant. With part of the ceremony
being when their names were called to collect their certificates, their baby picture
was shown side by side with their present age photo. Causing many of us to gasp
at how quickly time has passed and how much our children have grown. Ending of the
middle years. Making way for the beginning of the senior year.
Then on the Tuesday night my brothers and sister and their
families along with some of their friends all gathered at my house to celebrate
my niece’s victory. An impromptu gathering because my brother and his wife were
leaving the next day to go back home to Tennessee. But the gathering ended up
better than if we had planned the gathering for weeks. With lots of memories
talked about. Lots of beginnings discussed. Showing that sometimes it’s the
unplanned that turns into the best plan.
Then on Wednesday of course came the fire, threatening to
take away all that we own but was contained before it could take away everything.
Yes the fire took away sentimental items that can never be replaced, but it did
not take away our family, our love, our togetherness and spirit and neither did
it take away our home. We consider ourselves to be the luckiest people in the world
because of what could have been but was not. Taking me to my quote of the day that
said, “I bless the past with love, take a deep breath, and move gently into the
new. “ That’s what the fire has done for me. It has cemented those memories
into that deepest recesses of my brain, opening space for me to move into the future
with love and gratitude.
My brother and his wife coming to the house before they left
to show us support as our yard was still full of firemen and the acrid smell of
smoke. They took the photograph of my husband and I standing with the fireman
who happened to be my cousin. Their time in Bermuda ending. Their journey back home
beginning. Our time with the things in the shed ending and our life without them
beginning.
On Thursday my daughter had her prize giving. Marking the
end of her time in Year 5. Making way for her to enter her last year of primary
school. My husband and I there to watch her take home a prize with pride on her
face. Watching her getting ready for next school year to be the amongst the oldest
in her primary school.
That evening we went to dinner at Blu to celebrate our children’s
end of another school year and to celebrate that we were still together as a
family despite the fire. And to celebrate life, renewal, and beginnings. We sat
near the window overlooking the harbor. The evening light so magical. Shifting
as the sun was setting. Light bouncing off objects almost making things shine
bright like diamonds. What a perfect evening we chose to celebrate our endings
and beginnings. Watching the majestic sun setting in the west. Casting an image
of a 5 sided star on the water. The hues shifting from blue, to red, to orange
before the sun slipped below the horizon line. Taking in the beauty of the place
we live in. Grateful for seeing before us the ending of the day with such splendor
and grace. Allowing us to understand and see endings make way for a new day as
the sun slipped away.
On Friday my husband, son and I attended our daughter’s
flying up ceremony from Brownies to Guides. Looking at the little ones who were
making their pledges to become Brownies and thinking of how quickly time flies
by. How it seemed just like yesterday that my daughter was making her Brownie
pledge and now she is on her way to becoming a Girl Guide. Jumping the toad stool
on her way to Girl Guides.
Life is all about change. About beginnings and endings.
About upsets and disappointments. About us learning more and more about
ourselves. But also it is about living in the present moment. Being aware of
every action we take, every statement we make, every intention we have because
we are setting the stage for what is to come and who is to remain in our lives.
And for this week of endings and beginnings, upsets and the unexpected, I am
truly grateful because I am learning that life moves on regardless of what we are
doing and it is up to us to be a part of it, fully present in each moment. Because
no two moments are ever the same. With gratitude and reverence, Namaste.