The Spool Within Us

Photo courtesy of: Christine Chevrier

       My husband and I enjoyed an impromptu conversation this evening about our family tapestry and us. It required some intense self-reflection and mindfulness. We, as other parents, are many times swept by the fun, interesting and often eye-opening drift of our children. They capture our thinking, emotions and imagination and then imprison our hearts, cup our ears and lock our eyes leaving little time for us to remember our connection or ourselves.

     Therefore, having this rare attention on our relationship this evening was welcomed. The kids were enjoying a moment together, connecting as siblings; over a "Netflix" episode and we had nothing that needed our full attention except our own. 

     Seeking a connection with anyone is not as easy or quick as constructing and then demolishing a peanut butter sandwich within five minutes of the jars leaving the security of our fridge. Seeking a connection involves a variety of supplies, diverse fabrics and multicolored threads. It involves task analysis just after a thought enters your mind and just before your ego or fears take over your willingness to reach-out . And yet, despite the excitement of it all, we often neglect ourselves in the whole process. We forget where that circular tapestry of life, stemmed from to begin with; the center. 

     Though we would like to believe that many of the delays that pop up along the way of our connection flight is either due to issues such as other delayed flights or weather conditions, it is usually due to the weight of the luggage we carry onto the cabin with us.

     We may choose the wrong thread or start off on the wrong square then try to hide the defects, but the truth will eventually surface. It will whisper that our connection tapestry will look misshapen from the very moment we start stitching if we never dealt with the spool and the knots on our thread.