Midnight

Midnight.

That’s when I crawled into bed last night. The red numbers on my alarm clock glared at me, reminding me that it was way past my bedtime.img_4537

But my sleepy eyes couldn’t steal the smile off my face. And my drained body couldn’t take away the fullness of my heart.

I was very tired when I got home. It was a busy workday, then I led a ladies’ group for two hours. On the quiet drive home, I thought of the few things I needed to do before I went to bed. I decided they could wait.

My plan was to chat with my family, change into my pajamas, wash my face, brush my teeth, then go to bed.

My husband and youngest daughter followed me into the bedroom. They were still chatty. We sat there, talked about our day in more detail, laughed and yawned. My husband got his fill and went into the living room, but his spot on the bed was taken by my 18 year-old son. I was surprised he was home. I don’t see as much of him and his older sister. They’re always on the go…….working, hanging out with friends……just not home.

But he was home last night. He lay across the bed and listened to his little sister talk and talk. He stayed there, interjecting something every now and then. He asked me how group went and listened some more to his little sister talk and talk.

When she was through with all of her words and left the room, he shared what was on his mind. Deep stuff. Life stuff. So we talked. And I didn’t feel tired. And he felt better about some things.

He made his way to the kitchen when he realized he was hungry. I realized how tired I really was. So I changed into my pajamas, washed my face, and brushed my teeth. I heard my oldest daughter come in the front door. It felt as if I hadn’t seen her in days. I went into the living room and sat on the love seat. She sat too and showed me some pictures on her phone. We had a short talk then she went into her bedroom.

She came back before I made it off the love seat. She started talking again. Sharing what she’s been thinking. Deep stuff. Life stuff. So we talked. And I felt really tired but it didn’t matter. We talked and we both felt better about some things.

I finally crawled into bed with a big smile and a full heart.  And I slept.

Because the red numbers on my alarm clock didn’t keep me from the essential things.

 

7 thoughts on “Midnight

  1. That is beautiful, and I know exactly how you feel. I have 2 teenage boys, and love it when they want to just hang out and share what’s going on in their lives. These are precious moments, that we will cherish forever

  2. This is just gorgeous and beautiful. I sadly don’t have children, but I do have a seventeen-year-old niece that I am very close to. She comes to visit me regularly. When we have moments like these, I treasure them.

  3. Reblogged this on Full-Time and commented:

    Sometimes you’re allowed a glimpse of the deepest parts of someone’s heart. That happened late last night. My oldest daughter and I talked.

    About life. About deep things. Needed things. Good things and hard things.

    It seems like the late hours are when hearts are most open. Maybe we’re too tired to keep our guards up. Or even better, the guards completely go away. Either way, it’s a beautiful thing.

    Staying up late to see deep into a heart is worth it every time.

  4. I LOVE this so much! My voicemail has said for like the last 7 years “An inconvenience is just an adventure wrongly considered!” I wonder how many sweet moments like this that we miss because we have plan, a routine that it doesn’t fit into. LOVED reading this. Thank you!

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