"The problem with life is it's so daily"

I read this quote recently in a book* and at first thought it was stupidly obvious, but at second glance was struck with the truth of the statement. When I look back on seasons of my life, I see events--birthdays, Christmas, dinners with friends, snowboarding trips, evenings spent eating ice cream and going to pubs. I don't remember the monotony of standing in the bus queue, doing laundry, buying groceries--unless something very funny happened.

The daily-ness of life is what wears us and tires us, yet also somehow comforts us when everything else is volatile. It's the milestones and the nights out and the reunions that tug us out of our apathy and invite us take a step back and breathe.

A word of sincerity: Growing up is hard! Financial independence, relationships, insurance, rent, paperwork, conflict resolution...somehow our years of education didn't prepare us for the many realities of life.

I've been thinking back recently on how simple life appeared to me as a child. I am continually shocked at how my parents provided for us a stable, loving, warm and joyful home, in the midst of a world in chaos. Moreover, they managed to give us attention, love, fun memories and a priceless education and value system, meanwhile navigating the grown-up world of mortgages and sickness and jobs and drama. On the one hand, it scares me to death to imagine parenting and the continually growing pile of responsibilities. And yet, on the other hand, I look at the heroes who have gone before me, my parents and siblings and neighbors and friends at Church, who wake up every morning and face the day with energy and vigor and smiles.

Knowing now how much effort went into my parents giving us birthday parties as children gives me such appreciation for the joy and simplicity of the events. I now look forward, with greater joy and anticipation, to the sweet moments of rest, family and peace...

Growing up isn't as bad as Peter Pan made it out to be as we are given so many blessings mixed with the toil. As a kid, I couldn't have imagined how joys could be mixed with sorrows and still be joy. And yet, today, as I embrace ministry and marriage and the long journey of maturity, I think the difficulties make the joys all the sweeter.

*Love and Respect, Dr. Emerson Eggerichs