Spring is in the air … I think. Apart from the record high temperature and then snowfall two days later about two weeks ago, I’m hopeful Spring is finally here to stay.

I’ve said this before, but Spring is one of my favorite seasons. I love seeing new life in nature. Neighbors that you haven’t seen much all winter surface with the warm weather. We round the last bend of a school year for our daughter. Family walks with the dog transpire without having to bundle up. Yes, I love Springtime.

Yesterday on our walk, I found myself looking at the trees threatening to show life on their branches, and imaged picnics and BBQs in the backyard, possible flowers blooming now that our puppy is nearing one year old, and summer vacations. I caught myself smiling at the thought of such great things.

How is it that Spring can invoke such excitement and anticipation when nature still appears so brown and dull? For me, the thrill of Springtime is the reminder that renewal will be around the corner. I may not see it yet, but I know it’s coming. Whatever has lingered, will have its chance to be refreshed and new, like a new resolution to tackle those weeds before they overtake my rose bushes this Summer.

With another Spring season here, it’s also a reminder that our daughter is growing up — only five more Springtimes and she will be college bound.

Life is fleeting. Each day counts.

How are we spending today?

Newspaper headlines are discouraging. Yet, they reveal the reality of our society.

Today, every day violence, sex, child abuse, and substance abuse can be found gracing numerous pages of the newspaper. Entering rehab for alcohol before reaching the legal age to drink has become more common. Divorce is the norm, not the exception. Drugs have become an entrepreneurial endeavor for the white-collar worker. Now, the number of incarcerated adults topples 2.3 million nationwide.

There is no shortage of difficulty or depressing news around us. Thriving each day can be a struggle.

When things get difficult, we each respond differently. Withdraw and retreat. Pray. Get busy. Seek comfort. Avoid. Rage.

So much of being a parent flows from our example. Our children watch how we handle what life throws our way. They learn our coping skills and then carry them into adulthood.

We are raising the future leaders of our country. What is it we’d like to pass on?

I just returned from the Writing for the Soul Writer’s Conference in Colorado Springs, Colorado. What a motivating, encouraging, and invigorating conference! One of the greatest things I love about this conference is that I walk away refueled in ways that go beyond my writing career.

I attended McNair Wilson’s workshops and continuing classes on Creativity and Brainstorming. He is an author, actor, playwright, and humorist who challenges the status quo like no other. Shortly after I finished an appointment with an editor, I walked into his next session that had already begun.

“Is anyone in here still writing with a ball point pen?” He blurted. “Stop! Grab one of these markers up here — you’ll take better notes.”

A bit confused, I grabbed a marker wondering how I would take a cornucopia of notes in my outline with a thicker tip than my ball point pen. In mid-sentence, my notes went from small blue type font, to a larger teal imprint. At the next break, I went up and asked McNair the purpose of the marker.

“If you do the same thing the same way every time, you will see the same thing. To tap into your creativity, do it differently.”

I shared with him how my very creative daughter does her homework in colors, but I never understood why. To me, her math homework appeared messy and hard to read with the variety of colored markers. Social Studies and Language Arts reports came filled with various colored computer fonts and pictures. Everything comes with color and pictures.

“Of course it is. That is how her mind thinks.” McNair said.

I now understand. My daughter’s creativity flows into everything she does. Unintentionally, I had encouraged her to conform instead of tap into her natural creativity.

I took notes the rest of the conference in my teal-colored marker. When I filled up the page, I continued in the notepad they provided. By the end of the conference, I was determined to get a whole set of colored markers for myself.

When I got home, I showed my daughter my colored notes.

“Where did you get that cool marker?” she asked.

“McNair Wilson gave it to me.” I said. “I’m going to go buy a whole set for myself.”

She smiled.

As parents, it is so easy to encourage our children to conform. Without realizing it, we can zap their imagination and squelch their originality.

I know that isn’t what I desire to do. God has gifted my daughter in ways beyond my imagination. I want to encourage her to live out her God-given inspiration. So, I’m stepping out of my black and white routine and choosing to live in color!

My colored markers are just the beginning …

As I sit here this morning, the soothing music swells in the background while my candles flicker their luster. It brings to my mind the light we flash to our children.

Some days my glow is rather dim. Other days my wick is cut too short and the flame blows out time after time. These are not my shining moments as a mom, but it is from these moments that I learn and grow.

Did we take time to listen or just spout our thoughts? Were we exhausted? Did we take on too many commitments that now have us overwhelmed? Are we weary in need of renewal? Where did it all go wrong?

The difficulty comes in that life doesn’t afford extra time for pondering. It races to the next task or the next problem to solve. But as parents, we need to take time for evaluation in order to restore the luster in our light.

The light from my candle grows dim when it’s at the bottom of the wick and it needs some rejuvenation. To parent on empty ensures I will spew out the attitudes I care not to spurt. With a short wick, I need to scrap away the wax engulfing the wick to allow it room to glow once again. These are the times I take out my calendar and start erasing.

When we take a few moments to look at what is behind our fading shimmer, the flame can rise and sparkle once again.

Solitude. Dark roast coffee. Just a side table for my computer and I. Sound pitiful? Perhaps on the surface, but truth be told … these ingredients make up my weekly getaway to a local bookstore’s coffee shop. And I look forward to it every week!

Life gets chaotic and some days we endure things not so fun — such as my morning dental appointment today. It’s such days where I anxiously await my alone time. My 1 1/2 hours of solitude to read, write, vegetate, or drink lots of dark-roasted coffee.  It doesn’t matter what I do — it’s just my time to be.

For me, I find it helpful to make some of my solitude time away from home. That way, other household demands can’t trail along with me. The laundry hangs out in the hamper. The phone rests in the charger. The dishes remain, wherever they are whether dirty or clean. My husband and daughter do their thing. The dishes never complain and the phone is meticulous about taking messages. The clothes? I’ve never heard them scream. And my family enjoys their own routines during this time too.

For grins, I looked up the word getaway and laughed at one of the words referenced — “absent yourself.” I like that! It’s almost like telling life’s demands, “Hey, I’m sorry but I’m stepping out for a while.”

The word I like most was “retreat.” A retreat sounds like a day spent at the spa or on a tropical beach. My not-quiet-two-hour retreat doesn’t provide a spa or beach, but rejuvenation certainly shows up.

As parents, we often hold out anxiously awaiting our next vacation for rest — that is if we planned one. Such big trips are fantastic, but mini getaways contain their own treasures.

“But I don’t have time to getaway,” I hear some say. Remember the word ‘mini?’ Little escapes here and there. Small bits of time. Brief havens. It’s possible, but we need to get creative.

One friend of mine with two small children took advantage of visiting family by escaping for an hour each day to get a coffee and window shop — alone. The quick daily retreat provided the renewal she needed.

Need a few ideas for your next absent-yourself-event? Take a bath after the children go to bed to melt away the worries of the day. Sneak a book and flashlight under the covers at night — it’s a silly retreat that makes you feel young again. Wake up before your family, to a quiet house. Walk the dog to release stress robbers.

It doesn’t matter where your getaway is, just make sure it includes the opportunity to just be. So where will your next retreat be?