I think transitions are some of the most amazing, though sometimes the most difficult, times in life. Sometimes we don't even know we are in transition until it's over and are looking back on what just happened. Other times we are fully aware that this period in time is loaded with meaning and promises to be life changing.
My hunch is that as you get older and more mature, you have more of those very aware times and less suprises. Maybe it's because we are more self-aware or more frequently reflective. Or maybe it's because we start recognizing the patterns of transition and change faster.
I think most people say that there are two things in life that top the charts when it comes to ultimate life experiences: marriage and the birth of your children.
When you get married, you look forward to a forever change...the end of singleness...the beginning of deep relationship...the start of a journey in togetherness. But really, it is a continuation of something that began awhile ago. In our world, it's not like you have zero relationship until you utter "I do." It has been a beautiful process, and the wedding is more or less a public declaration that the two have been becoming one over a period of time.
I wouldn't disagree that having children is a continuation of this process and that God's design was for it to be a natural progression out of marriage. And of course, there's the miracle of bringing a new life into the world that shouldn't be lost on anyone. What an amazing thing! But there's something more.
I've been realizing that this transition into parenthood is way more significant than those things. It's not just that one day we are a couple and the next we are a family; or, one day I don't have a kid and the next day I do. It's that all of a sudden, before I even understand what it means, I'm a mommy.
This started to hit me when I stopped working a couple weeks ago. I realized that I was really excited...and it wasn't because I didn't have to go to work anymore. It was because I was starting to feel an entirely new identity shift.
I think it's different even than becoming a wife or a husband. Before you say your vows, you are already responsible to your significant other and have already begun your life together. There isn't that much change before the wedding versus after, other than the realization that you've done something permanent and are hopefully feeling very happy about it.
But before the birth of your child, it is hardly tangible. In many ways, the addition of an actual baby barely seems possible. I don't think any of the preparations could really help me grasp the reality of what is about to happen. I wonder if there is anything more dramatic and powerful than seeing and holding your child for the first time? I seriously doubt it.
If you ask Ryan what he is most excited about, his answer is simple: becoming a daddy.
How can you add anything to that really? Is there anything more significant than a change in identity?
Well, the miracle of a new life altogether, perhaps. =)
