Today, at Gypsy Mama it's 5 Minute Friday - that day where we write on the topic at hand for five minutes, uncensored and unedited. Our word today is "ordinary."
Ordinary is something we all take for granted until things aren't. Last fall, my youngest son suddenly started exhibiting extreme anxiety and OCD-like symptoms. He literally went from being fine one day to being a seemingly completely different child the next.
To say it was scary is an understatement. We prayed. We talked to doctors. We even visited a Christian psychologist. We asked questions and tried to find out what could have happened to produce this drastic change. Nothing seemed to help and he only seemed to get worse and we had no answers.
This lasted for about eight weeks and then it gradually subsided. He got better. He still has moments of anxiety, especially if he isn't feeling well, but overall, he's back to himself.
I remember the day that my hope returned. He had a friend over - the first in a while because you can't have another sixth grader over when your sixth grader spends several hours sobbing every day - and I heard his laughter.
I cried.
It had been at least a month since I had seen him smile, never mind laugh. The ordinary sound of laughter that I had taken for granted so many times - now it was a gift.
During that scary time, I wished with all my heart for the ordinary. It's so easy to take our days for granted - the gentle rhythm of each day, the passing of weeks, months and seasons. It easy to even feel a sense of boredom or wish for things to be more exciting or different. It's so easy to rely on the fact that tomorrow will be like today - ordinary
But then it isn't.
Suddenly, in the face of an accident or a diagnosis or something like we faced, ordinary starts to look pretty good after all.
The fact is, most of life happens in the ordinary. It's a place that can be full of joy and contentment. I know I'll never take ordinary for granted again.
~ Blessings, Bronte
p.s. My son experienced something called PANDA. You can find out more about it here
That must have been heartbreaking to see your child go through that. I think my two may get a little extra hug tonight xx
ReplyDeleteOooh can I relate. My husband went in for a MD appointment, and spent 7 days in the cardiac unit for a condition NO ONE knew he had. Our lives literally turned upside down. I too longed for ordinary. Thank you for the way to put this out there. Isn't God good in that HE carries us through it all?
ReplyDeleteGlad you waded in the FMF waters.
Peace and good, dreaming sister. So glad your sweet boy laughs again....
How scary. Glad you were there for him to help figure out what was going on and walk him through it. Those 8 weeks must have seemed like forever...
ReplyDelete