Catching Time
Yesterday, we slipped away on four wheels, just the two of us.We studied the colors of the lake and delighted in the sultry breeze. He spotted beauty I missed as we pedaled along– delicate monarchs on daisy thrones, crimson leaves on bright green limbs, and purple rocks beneath murky waters.
He did not barrage me with constant chatter as his sisters do. But occasionally he shared aloud what was on his mind. 
He marveled at the pace we kept without a parade of preschoolers in tow and wondered if we had ever made it so far without stopping. I reminded him that he’d initiated the big yellow bike trailor with crushed Cheerios and spilled juice long before his siblings had claimed the two-wheeled seat for themselves. I told him about the time we pitched a tent in a Missouri farm field and biked along the scenic Katy Trail while he babbled and cried in the baby carrier.
“I wish you could pull me now,” he teased as we shifted gears and pumped steadily up a steep winding hill. I watched the muscles in his legs pulse with each pedal, the biceps in his arms flex as he gripped the handlebars to make a sharp turn. When did he grow those mini-man arms? When did he add shape to his once stringy legs? I glanced over my shoulder for the little boy who had ambled at my side on clumsy training wheels just yesterday, but then realized I’d be left behind if I looked too long.
When we reached the croaking farm pond, my firstborn sighed wistfully. “I wish I’d brought something for catching frogs.” A tow-headed preschooler with an old green fishing net in one hand and a dirty mesh bug box in another raced through my mind. “Come outside and catch a big one with me, Mommy! Bring your net!”
I wish I’d brought something for catching time.
As we headed for home, his pace trumped mine. I could never pedal fast enough for your liking, I confessed while I gulped for air and pedaled madly. No matter how fast I rode, you sat in that bike trailer and begged to go FASTER!
My mini-man glanced over his shoulder with a grin. Sweat beads streaked his flushed face. “I’ll wait for you at the top, Mom.”
Yes, please wait, little boy. You’re going too fast!
Today’s Overflow: So teach us to number our days, that we may get us a heart of wisdom. Psalm 90:12
