Something was different this time

Verse of the Week:

“Through wisdom a house is built; by understanding it is established."

— Proverbs 24:3 (WEB)

Last Friday I was in Jacksonville for the Disability & the Church Tour hosted by Key Ministry.

I went as a speaker and stayed as an attendee, and I got as much from sitting in the other sessions as I did from giving mine. Church leaders who drove in from all over, asking real questions about families they’re trying to serve better. An amazing experience.

Then I came home.

And this is what was waiting for me (picture above), plus a daughter screaming at the door because Daddy was home.

For years, this would have gone differently.

The schedule would have slipped. The questions came in all day. We didn’t have much help and we didn’t have a system yet.

Even when I was away, I was never off. On the phone. On speaker helping with Christian. Or trying to help my wife find something in the house from hundreds of miles away.

We figured it out some way, somehow.

Now, this time, none of that happened.

Not because the kids suddenly got easier, or we got lucky.

But because my wife and I have spent years building the thing underneath it.

Routines that hold when one of us isn’t here.

Knowing which triggers are coming before they arrive.

Telling both kids what’s happening ahead of time instead of hoping they adjust to it.

Talking to each other about all of it, constantly, even when we’re tired and neither of us wants to.

Now both of them understand when Daddy is working and has to be away for a couple of days.

I still try to keep my travels short. Three days maximum, then I’m home.

That’s a line I try not to move.

But the fact that it works at all isn’t luck. That’s two people building something, one ordinary week at a time, for years, without knowing if it was going to work.

So, last Friday I stood in a room and talked about families like ours. Then I came home to this.

More grateful than when I left.

Hope your week started with something like it.

If you’ve got a moment like this one, hit reply and tell me about it. One sentence is plenty.

And if you know a parent who’d recognize themselves in this, forward it to them.

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Disclaimer: This content is for general educational purposes only and is not a substitute for clinical, medical, financial, insurance, tax, legal, employment, or HR advice. Please consult licensed professionals who understand your individual situation.