Losing some shoes, but still moving forward...

Over the past couple years, this family has lost some shoes.

One pair walked off to university.  They come back for holidays, hugs, and games, but never often enough or long enough.  Still, I love following their footsteps through new adventures.  I'm so curious where they will eventually land (and constantly scheming how to bring them back as often as possible).  Whenever I see their shoes in the entryway, it makes me smile.

Another pair decided they weren't a good fit for this family and walked off to check out other shoes, other feet.  It was hard but I've stopped looking for those shoes in the closet, have even started to enjoy the extra space.

Another pair comes and goes. They are here now, trying to find their trail through this life.  I'm so happy they found their way back to me and also hope they find their path away when the time is right.  In the meantime, they've brought another pair of shoes to join us for now.  They're nice shoes; I hope they stay for quite awhile.

And that leaves four shoes.  Two of those are gaining independence, venturing away from home sometimes to visit the shoes that left, other times to explore or travel with friends.  They always come back home, but each time they leave, I can't help but think of how soon it might just be my own two shoes in this house. 

To go from ten to two in just a few years is an enormous metamorphosis. It has been a time of grieving, growing, and breathing.  I've become a lot more comfortable in my own two shoes.  So even though our journey has changed, life is still just like a new pair of shoes, and I am busy breaking them in.