Lost Then Found

We live in a society that seems to have forgotten the virtue of patience. We have drive through fast food, drive through banking, and drive through pharmacies. A great deal of our shopping is done online, and we don’t even have to spend time driving to and from the mall. We TIVO shows on television so we can watch them when it is convenient, and while watching them, we fast forward through all the commercials. We cook a lot of our food in microwaves because it is faster, and we often buy whole meals, precooked, at our local markets. We rush through schedules and plans, keeping calendars that are so full of appointments that we often can’t even read what day it is. In fact, I personally have to schedule my down-time just so I can be sure I get some. But there is one place where having patience has really paid off for me – raising my son, Corey.

I’ve written about Corey three times in the past. First I introduced you to his early life, life before he joined my family. Then I talked about his Eeyoreness, and finally I wrote about his idiosyncrasies. But now, almost three years since he joined my family, I believe Corey is changing for the better.

He seems more settled into his skin these days. He seems happier, except when teenage angst takes over as it will with any teenage boy from time to time. He is getting better grades in school. He has a girlfriend and from all reports, seems to be handling his first boy-girl relationship better than most 15 year old boys. He remembers his chores – most of the time. His personal grooming habits are improving. He seems to be sleeping better. But the one thing that told me a change has really taken place in the life of this once-lost boy is what he wrote in my Mother’s Day card.

Inside the card which he had made for me were the words, “thank you for always being there for me. I love you.”

Yes, patience can pay off – in many wonderful and unexpected ways.