Swing Time of Life

Is it just me? Do you find that swinging makes you feel dizzy?

  And does it then make your heart feel just a little bit sad? 

One of my very favorite past times was to "go swinging" with my sisters. We would try to go as high as we could and touch the very clouds. (For me, I secretly hoped that I could get Grandpa to reach down and say hello....maybe just ONCE.) 

I remember the metal swing set that my dad put in with the help of friends. It was PAINFUL to wait for the concrete to set up! It came complete with rings and a trapeze, because, well, we WERE going to be gymnasts like Mary Lou Retton after all. (I am sure that in today's world, it would be considered entirely too dangerous, just like merry-go-rounds and slides.... SIGH. Really?)

Lance wanting to "ride a horse".

And then. Well. Then we would lay back and come swooshing toward the ground and yet somehow be stopped from banging our heads at the very last moment. Laughing and giggling and feeling the wind on our faces remains one of my favorite memories. Lying on our stomachs, then, and hanging our heads down until we were so dizzy that we collapsed on the ground.

As I looked at the pictures that I took over the Thanksgiving weekend, I realized that almost three quarters of them are of kids in swings. The laughing-silly-rush-of-life smiles just make my heart melt. 

Lucy said, "WOW. I really am a little big!"

So why is it that I was drawn to this? 
Was it the feeling of freedom that comes with it? 
The memory of easier times? 
The sheer look of joy on their faces. 
Maybe that and so much more.... because then there was this:

As I was fitting Max into his seat, I look over, and there is Lucy and my mom, Nana, swinging together. Attempting to get comfortable on a small piece of rubber swing... My heart swelled to see my niece and my mom being so silly. It made me remember doing the same thing with her when I was a kid. 


And then it hit me. It really wasn't about being comfortable on that swing. 

It was about just being together. Just being. Being together.

So that's it! Swinging in and of itself was fun. Yes. But not just that. It was because I never really went swinging by myself. 
I was with my sisters. 
...with Carol and her sisters
...Liz
...Tina. 
Or.... mom or dad. Someone shared the experience. They made it richer by being present.

As I walk on this crazy-twisted journey of life, and occasionally hit the pitfalls and dizzy spells, I realize how lucky I am to have some very special companions on the journey. 


Companions who help me to look toward heaven in new and exciting ways. Who help me recognize that life, and indeed my very faith, with its ups and downs and sideways moves is so much better....together. 


(So who wants to go swing?)

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