time together

The last week has been so very busy and full; there is so much of it I want to share here (if only the days would slow down a bit so I could find the time!). Amidst all the bustle of classes, visiting friends, warm weather and welcoming spring, I enjoyed an unplanned bit of time alone with Sophia over the weekend.

Spending time one-on-one with any of the children is always a pleasure. Take away the interruptions and the challenges of meeting many needs at once and the pace slows, conversation flows easily, nothing feels rushed or neglected. There is so much I enjoy about watching all the children together, but each time I am alone with any one of them, I feel a deepening sense of who they are as individuals and a greater respect for their growing independence.

Our time this weekend found us at a familiar destination for a celebration of springtme on the farm, complete with the season's work to be done and farmyard signs of new life. With bright sunshine and warmth more like that of a summer's day, we enjoyed the sights of the season.

the horses at work in the fields


bloodroot blooming on the forest floor

planting out the season's oat crop

green grass and sunshine


a carpet of blue flowers

a favorite resting spot in the creek

Springtime is wrought with so many symbols of time passing, growth and change, but most startling to me on this spring day was the growth I see in the young girl with whom I shared the day. Any analogies I feel inclined to make about it all seem trite. I have been witness to each of her days over the passage of time, but it takes a few moments like these, stripped of the distractions of every day living, to see just how much has become of all that time.

Time I am so grateful we have spent together.