“Life becomes more meaningful when you realize the simple fact that you’ll never get the same moment twice.”

When my daughter-in-law came to drop off my adorable grandbaby this morning so I could babysit him for her while she went to work and I saw her lugging in the car seat and diaper back and feeling frazzled because she was already running late, I had a total flashback of what it felt like when I was in her shoes.

I remember those days as a new parent – getting no sleep, being exhausted all the time, feeling like you would never be able to go anywhere again without being late because you had to feed the baby before you could leave and you had to pack up the diaper bag with everything but the kitchen sink so you would be prepared for everything from spit-ups to throw- ups to full on diaper blow-outs. That phase of life when you are having babies and raising little kids feels like you can often barely make it through a day without feeling you’re going to losing your mind completely. So you get through it by telling yourself that someday things are going to be easier… Back then I wasn’t focused on appreciating each moment because I was focused on just barely being able to hang in there and get through my day in one piece…

But sitting there this morning holding my little grandbaby and feeding him a bottle I didn’t care that my phone was ringing off the hook or that emails were flooding my inbox or that the delivery man was pounding on the front door….all I cared about was the fact that I was holding this little baby in my arms watching him stare up at me as he drank his bottle…because after many years of life experience and several gray hairs (which I immediately dye back to my dark color again the moment they appear!), I have come to realize that I will never ever get this same moment twice, and that makes it oh so much more meaningful to me…As hard as it is to see those gray hairs appear, the upside is that with them comes having lived through years of life lessons which have made you far more able to appreciate each moment because you know understand how quickly they will pass…

No matter what stage of life we are in it is always good to remind ourselves that this moment is going to pass more quickly than we can imagine, both the good moments and the bad ones, and we will never live this same moment twice. Treasure each one.

~Amy Rees Anderson