They say the only things in life that are certain are death and taxes. I would like to add two things to that list: God and Time flying by. For we Christians, Jesus is a given. He is always there for us. He is the almighty, never changing. We can always count on the Bible being the same and therefore His word being there for us as a guidebook.
In addition, as a woman who some may consider "middle aged" (yikes), I can absolutely count on time going way too fast. As a child I thought Christmas would never get here, never. Now it seems to always BE Christmas. Yes it is time to worry about getting those Christmas cards out again, figuring out what to get the kids and how much to spend, who to give gifts to, making cookies, managing Christmas party schedules, getting out the decorations, lights, wrapping, ................any woman knows exactly what I mean. Doesn't it seem like women get the lion's share of the Christmas responsibilities? How did that happen? I would love a Christmas where I could buy no gifts and just go to church and focus on the real meaning of Christmas, but that is a whole other blog subject. The point is that it is that time again and it ALWAYS seems to come around again too fast! How can years be melting away so quickly?
I honestly sometimes feel like I am still college aged. The other night I was watching a biography on Billy Joel. They showed a video clip of "Uptown Girl" - remember Friday Night Videos? That song was popular when I was a college Freshman pledging Delta Gamma. It brought me back to a road trip our pledge class took to Penn State. The video was on during this party we were having with a Fraternity there. I could so clearly remember the layout of the fraternity house, the temperature (cold), the smells (well fraternity houses always smell like beer), the guys (they were all short for some reason), and "Uptown Girl" was on Friday Night Videos. Now wasn't that just yesterday? It seems like it was.
I was transported to a short time ago when Billy Joel (the coolest dude ever) was married to the most beautiful female on the planet, Christy Brinkley. They seemed to be the perfect couple. There was something hopeful and exciting knowing that an uptown girl would marry a downtown guy. Life seemed to have endless possibilities. I still want a life I consider filled with endless possibilities, maybe that is why I can get back to that place, so easily.
Last month I went to my son's fraternity house for parent's weekend. Again, how can this be? Am I actually the parent here? While standing in line for the meal that was served, I felt like I could have been a sorority girl. It's funny how time goes by so quickly, but things never change. Even though we were at the University of Florida, not the college I graduated from, James Madison University in Virginia, it was the same: the smells, the activities (involving beer and ping pong), the deep bonds and friendships between the brothers, the comfortable feeling, the relaxed atmosphere. For a few hours I was back in college - maybe in a different role, but I was back.
Yes, time flies, but there are things you can always count on.
