As someone who has worn glasses virtually his entire life, I did not look forward to the time when I would have to get the dreaded bi-focal. Imagine my delight when that day arrived and I discovered that they had developed the “transition” lens; a lens that did not have a sharp break between near and far but rather seamlessly transitioned from near, intermediate and distance.
I have been thinking a lot lately about transitions in life, and how different they appear, depending on whether we are looking at them at the outset (near), during the transition (intermediate), or in hindsight (distance). It was exactly one year ago today that Mary and I got in our car–despite the fact that I was still recovering from a pretty severe bout with Covid–determined to salvage our two-week vacation plans to drive to Montréal. It was on the way home–driving west from Kansas City on I-70, listening to the morning session of General Conference on Saturday–when I finally got buy-in from Mary on putting in our mission papers as soon as we got home. In one short year, Mary and I have transitioned from working and raising kids to retirement and empty-nesting to selling our house and, as of tomorrow, living in French-speaking Canada. Years from now, upon reflection, these transitions might seem as smooth and seamless as my transition lenses, but at the outset, they seemed insurmountable, and while we are in the thick of them, we are feeling every rough edge and noticing every flaw.
It makes me appreciate how resilient our children are as they navigate all the transitions in their lives. High school graduation, missions, college, dating, post-graduate work, marriage, children, careers, etc. And it makes me appreciate the growth they experience and the great things they are doing as a result of these transitions. I have been fortunate enough to be able to experience them in some small way, such as ordaining Sean as a High Priest when he was called as a Stake High Councilor, and standing in the circle when Ben blessed both Patrick and (today) Jordan. Some of them we may miss as we serve our mission. But as parents, regardless of where we are, we also feel very acutely, the rough edges and unexpected bumps in their lives in ways they might not be able to fully appreciate yet. I just hope that, in the long run, the rewards that we are all experiencing as a result of these transitions will outweigh the scrapes and bruises that unavoidably result. And, when viewed from a comfortable distance, in hindsight, will have been worth it.