Missed It!

I drive a ’94 Camry. It’s been a good car: few repairs, pretty decent mileage, dependable and comfortable. Recently I noted that the odometer was getting close to the 200,000 mark. Wow! I thought. What a milestone! I planned to wait until the odometer was about to turn and get my husband to join me in the car as I drove past the magic number. How fun would that be? But one day I looked down and saw that the odometer was at 200,187. I had gotten so distracted by my busy life that I missed the big moment!
Okay, a changing odometer isn’t a big deal, but I had to wonder – what else have I missed? Like what happened to the summer? We have a lovely deck, but I sat out there and relaxed only a few times the whole season. And the fall? Well, that’s practically gone, too. I guess it was beautiful, but who noticed? And couldn’t I have spent less time dashing from task to task and more time actually talking to people, enjoying family and friends, appreciating my life?
The years are clicking by faster than the miles on my odometer. If I don’t pull over to look at the view now and then, I’m going to miss everything that matters.

Christmas is coming!

And it'll be here before you know it! Pauline Books and Media has a nice seasonal book out -- Celebrate the Season! Twelve Short Stories for Advent and Christmas. It's a great book for kids 8-12. You can check it out at http://www.pauline.org/. And, YES, I have some stories in that book!