Monday, August 10, 2009

Son Flower

It's Sunflower time again. With the brilliant golden blooms that dot the Kansas prairie brings the dawn of my son's senior year....and I'm not ready.

You tell yourself that this time is coming. While he rides his stick horse around the living room, helps you with brownie-baking and creepy-crawler-making and lies beside you on a blanket of green grass with a storybook in one hand and a cookie in the other, you tell yourself that these times don't last. But with the busyness of everyday life and the endless days of childhood sweetness, you don't really believe it.

Then before you know it, he's taller than you with a deep voice and in a circle where you're no longer the center. It's where you want him to be, where you raised him to be and you encourage him to fly, while clipping your own wings just a bit so you're not tempted to follow behind.

He is a unique individual, my son; strong in who he is and marching confidently to the rhythm that he hears, knowing that I love him unconditionally. While his friends gear up for a year filled with football and fun, he looks beyond that to what's over the horizon and the possibilities that lie past the boundaries of our little town. And while I feel melancholy at the prospect of him growing up, I'm excited for the paths he has before him. I know he carries the tools to build a joyful life and will use them well in his journey.

So as this last school year approaches and an era comes to an end, embrace your life, son. Enjoy who you are and what this world has to offer. Leave each day a little better than its dawning possibilities. Be strong and go forward with a song - and a Kansas Sunflower - in your heart, knowing I love you.....and that I always will.







7 comments:

~Brenda said...

I love the “son flowers”, the last photo with your son standing with his arms outstretched shows he is ready for the next adventure in his life and is embracing it.

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Oh Lori, That is so sweet. What a neat-looking son you have. I know it's hard to see them grow up and leave the nest. I raised 3 boys --and now the youngest is 38... Yipes!!!!

Thanks for such a wonderful post.
Hugs,
Betsy

srp said...

What glorious sunflowers... and yes, it is hard to let them go. I still can't believe Nyssa is in her 23rd year and about to get her master's degree. Wonderful shots... I have missed you!

Lorac said...

Nice! We do love our sons! Great pics to have and remember.

John said...

What fine words for your son to absorb. Just like the sunflower your son is a flower best suited at growing toward the sun. No matter how tall he gets he would be nothing if not for his roots in the Kansas soil.

Joe Todd said...

sunflowers and morning glory are my favorites. Truly beautiful

Carolyn Ford said...

Those sun (son) flowers are amazing! I have never seen them so large! The sky in the background is the perfect framing for these beautiful flowers!