Our pool has been a lifesaver on these hot days and provides much fun for our family. However, this summer wind provides much work for me with the pool as I feel like I’m forever skimming all the leaves and debris.

The most disheartening thing is when I finish skimming and am ready to kick back and relax, another gust of wind kicks up. In an instant the beautiful clear water is once again littered.

Such has been the past few days for me.

As I was out skimming for the fourth time yesterday, I thought about how my debris-magnet pool is much like life sometimes. Just when we catch up, there is a mound of things yet to do. Just when we get back from the grocery store, we think of four more things we forgot to get. Just when we get the house cleaned, the wet dog traipses across the floors. Just when our child masters a difficult situation, we’re faced with a few more. Just when we find a discipline tactic that works, our child enters a new phase with a whole new set of challenges.

There are days when I just want to sit down and let all the debris fall and wait to pick it up once it’s all done blowing. But the trouble is … we don’t know when it will stop and wind is inevitable. One thing is for sure — too much debris in a pool clogs filters (among other things) and letting it pile up creates more problems!

Being a parent isn’t much different. Circumstances and demands will always litter our path and threaten our kick back and relax idealistic dreams. That’s because our kids are constantly growing and developing which means we have to keep on our toes to keep up. Skimming. Skimming. Skimming. To give up only creates additional problems.

It’s in the challenges that speak volumes of what we’re made of and our tenacious desire to be the best parent we can be. So we need to keep on keeping on.

Right now, my pool has many floaties (and not the kind made for enjoyment). But no worries, I’m heading back out to skim once again …

“Wow, she’s opinionated,” my four-week-old daughter’s pediatrician exclaimed after seeing her display her inherent personality. I smiled, but silently wondered how her opinions would play out when she got older. It didn’t take long to see. Months later, it was clear no toy in front of her would entice her to crawl. She crawled when and where she wanted. She was a born leader. Fifteen years later, her opinions are further formulating and she still freely shares them.

When she was in elementary school, I wrote her special encouraging notes for her lunchbox every day. I didn’t ask myself how giving her encouraging notes would play out when she got older, but when I was discouraged with a long recovery from a car accident, I found out. She presented me with a page containing a couple of my notes I had given her over the years along with a few of her own now for me–just to encourage me in my day.

So often we go about our day not paying close attention to how what we say or do will play out over the long haul. What kind of an impact could it make if we did?

As another year winds down and comes to a close, I’m reminded how close we are inching towards the college years for our daughter. Time is fleeting.

Over the years, she’s talked about a variety of careers she’d like, but like most children, they’ve morphed through the years. However, now they are solidifying more as she discovers how best to use her passions. It’s a cool uncovering to be a part of with her.

There are two words I’m finding I need to focus on more and more as a parent in these tender self-discovery years: encouragement and support.

Encouragement to challenge her to ask questions, to believe in herself, to be confident in the talents and passions God imprinted in her, and to go for it.

Support to listen to her ideas and concerns, to affirm the decisions she makes, to be there when she struggles and cheer her on to try again, and to reassure her — she can!

In the hurried pace of life, its easy to overlook the importance of those two words, but their impact is monumental. Be an anchor as your children find their path and give them the confidence they need to soar.

There are two lasting bequests we can give our children.

One is roots.  The other is wings.  ~Hodding Carter, Jr.