The Countdown that was Missed, the Moments that were Not.
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If I could have some super powers, one of them (besides being able to fly!) would definitely be to be able to slow time down – in a way that makes one minute last for more than 60 seconds. I could really use an hour or two more, a day.
Just the other day, I was thinking to myself: It’s one more day to Christmas, two more to Emma’s 2nd month birthday, and three more to Matthew’s 2nd birthday.
And then. Christmas has come and gone. [Okay, so not really, in the liturgical sense but for me, Christmas seems to end after Midnight Mass every year.]
Today, Emma turns two-months old.
Tomorrow, Matthew will turn two-years-old.
I look at Matthew now and there is a disjunct within that two years have flown by. He still feels like a newly-minted baby, who is just a lot brattier these days. I look at Emma and cannot understand where exactly the last two months have gone!
And so I’m glad that there is an itinerary (still work-in-progress though) for how we shall spend this Christmas-New Year break, since Augz is on leave till Jan 6, and especially since Matthew starts pre-nursery come January.
I’ve learnt over the last few years – with the passing of my dad – and relearnt recently – after being shocked into the realisation that time vanishes when there is one toddler and one newborn occupying the same space-time continuum – to make my moments count.
Today will not come by again.
Christmas may not feel like Christmas if I don’t prepare myself spiritually in anticipation of Christ, or if I don’t deliberately choose to play the Christmas songs I like.
There will not be another Thursday, 26 December 2013 if we had let it slip by with us watching TV or playing Candy Crush. While all that is well and good, I feel it is almost unforgivable if it happened only because we were just “coasting by” on the days when we want to do something.
So the itinerary for today was to head out for breakfast at Coastes, Sentosa, where the boy could have a huge sandpit to explore and where Augz and I could chill for a bit together. Emma came along, of course, together with our helper.
Although we started the day late, it was still time well-spent, largely because we were determined to make it so. LOL.
What we didn’t plan, was the bonding time we had in the evening while putting Matt to sleep. Emma happened to be awake as Matthew was winding down before bedtime, and Augz being around makes it so much more manageable (one can tend to fussing Emma while the other makes sure Matt isn’t feeling neglected… two can ensure the toddler doesn’t run crashing into his fragile little sister when he’s dashing across the bed to plant a kiss on her).
What we didn’t plan also, was receiving Emma’s first real smile. She’s been trying that out for a while though it wasn’t clear if she was really smiling yet, or it’s still all caused by gas. On the evening of her second-month birthday though, it was pretty obvious – our little girl has started smiling back at us.
Well, back at Augz first, who was singing ABBA to her. Daddy’s girl, she’s going to be.
So yes… until I have the super power to make more of time, I will continue to appreciate the benefits of making plans so more can happen on any given day, but I shall also remember to be ready for those plans to be wonderfully improved: You can lock your schedule down but you shouldn’t limit the possibilities to just what you have in mind. The weather may change, and the day may differ from what you imagine… but you can still always enjoy being surprised by beautiful moments – like first smiles, and oft-repeated laughs – that sneak up on those plans.
And if all else fails, just whip out the handy mobile phones to take pictures. For posterity.
MMJ
