Seven Years Ago

courtesy: LifeRiver Studios

My son turns seven today. It was seven years ago that our small coastal town was torn through by two hurricanes, one after another. During my final weeks of pregnancy I evacuated to my in-laws for the first storm, while the Firefighter worked to protect area citizens.

Our hospital had been damaged during that first hurricane. When my son was ready to be born (following the second storm), the maternity wing was overflowing with patients from all over the hospital. Women were laboring in the hallways. There was only one doctor handling pain management for all nine women awaiting the birth of their child. Power was out everywhere. My in-laws had to violate curfew as they drove into town to see us.

Needless to say, it was pretty chaotic.

In many ways, my experiences of being a first time mom felt kind of like those storms. Fierce winds of depression blew through our home that first year. Feelings of powerlessness and hopelessness crashed over me like the ocean waves crashing onto the shore. My seven-year-old’s name means “strong and impetuous,” a word that can be used to describe a fierce storm. And he has been that from time to time. Parenting a challenging child has sometimes felt like walking straight into the winds of a storm.

A storm often makes a way for new growth. Old trees fall down, then new ones are planted. A fierce storm can also cleanse the air of pollen and other allergens.

And it’s in the storms of life where the real growth happens.

A storm brought us our son. We have been changed forever because of that. Parenthood has played a huge part in our spiritual growth these past seven years. God has used parenthood to refine and change us. Though the storms of depression have threatened to undo me at times, God has used motherhood as part of the healing process. I have found beauty even in the midst of deepest pain.

The psalmist says that “joy comes in the morning.” And it’s true. The storms of life can produce great joy. The storm that accompanied our first years of parenthood has also brought us joy we never knew possible. Our son’s intelligence has amazed and humbled us over and over. His excitement over learning a new fact is contagious. His idiosyncracies have become what we love most about him. His smile melts my heart.

As I celebrate my son’s birthday, I’m reminded of the events that brought him to us and the years since. While God never promises a life of cloudless days, he does promise to be with us when the storms come. He is our anchor in the rough seas. I can’t trust in my own strength and wisdom to raise my kids. It’s God who guides me each step of the way. And it’s only God who can calm the storm.