For years, I had to braid Tylar’s hair before every softball or basketball game. It was a chore. It required waking up earlier than needed so that I could get that chore done before time to leave. So in case you’ve never been a travel ball parent, we are talking about every weekend spring, summer and fall before she was in high school, then every weekend in the summer while she was in high school. Then I had to braid it before school on each basketball game day and softball game day. Eventually, I had braided her hair hundreds, if not thousands of times. I never minded doing it, but I still looked at it like a chore to be done at least twice a week.
Then she went to college. Suddenly, I didn’t have to braid her hair anymore. Her softball teammates took over the chore, and I was left with my hands empty. I didn’t have to fit it in during early mornings, but I also lost my girl sitting in the floor in front of me while I worked with her hair. Boy, did I feel so much joy the few times she asked me to braid it when we would be at a hotel for games. It’s funny how those small moments grow into large ones after they have gone away. I’ve often heard that saying, “The days are long, but the years are short.” This is so true!
On our trip to Cancun last week, she asked me to braid her hair for a pool day, and I jumped at the chance! It was so nice to have her in front of me again as I worked to get the braids to look decent, and I didn’t feel as if I were doing a chore at all. I cherished that moment with the perspective of a mother with an adult child who knows all of those “chores” come to an end someday.
