Roots

The older I get, the harder it seems to be agile in my personal life. Maybe it's a mark of maturity, maybe experience. Maybe it's just the general investment of time, love, and care towards certain people and circumstances. In my teens and early twenties, I used to be able to hop on a flight, or get in car without thinking twice, not caring about the sights in the rearview mirror, about who was waving me off, or even if there was any other person in the vehicle. Life was about change, adventures, and the sheer excitement of being young and carefree. I wasn't so interested in roots, I wanted to be the leaf at the top of the tree, fluttering in the breeze. 

These days, I double check the mirrors, the windows, the locks. Praying with every step I take, each one bringing me further away, that these beloved persons and belongings stay safe. Maybe it's a mark of gratefulness, maybe it's the passage of time and the knowledge that all things fade. There's a bigger risk of coming home to changed affairs. There are people with whom I have true, great, intimate connections with, who I care about, who bring meaning to my life. Life's become a deep well of loving relationships and support, especially in these times. The leaf can't exist without the roots, the trunk, and the branches.