Distance

I became an Aunt today. About 4,000 km away, my little sister had a healthy and beautiful baby boy. His chubby cheeks and precious face stared at me through a glowing screen, and although I could only imagine how he would feel in my arms and the noises he might make, I swear I could almost smell his new baby scent through the phone.

Distance.

Distance can provide clarity and focus. A new perspective and an objectivity that you only gain when stepping back from the big picture.

I’m a grown-ass woman and yet I’ve felt myself grow more than I’ve expected these past two years, even these past few weeks have had their own growing pains. There are times I feel that life is just stuck in a cycle – wash, rinse, spin, repeat – but it’s what happens outside that spin cycle that has the biggest effect on our lives.

The real question is – do I actually see things more clearly now that I’ve stepped back? Or is it all just a façade of ignorance? Do I simply think that I can see things for what they truly are because I’ve had time to think on it…?

Our family is embarking on a journey this  year. We welcome this change with open arms, ready to embrace a new lifestyle and simplify our lives.  It’s been relatively easy to make small changes over time, which in the end equals a huge change, but I have to wonder if we can really do this as a family.  Right now we have space, we have a large home full of it, and we want to downsize to measures that might seem extreme to some – but at this moment I am blinded by the fun and the adventure and the love that will come out of it.

Where will we be a year from now, and does the answer to that question even matter? Only time will tell.

But for now, I relish in the addition to our family, no matter how physically far they may be, they are ever so close to my heart.