The Five Anchors

When my four kids were in elementary school, we would calculate the year they graduate from high school. It seemed so far away. After high school, I prepared for the empty nest season and as it came in a gradual and smooth way, I experienced great peace and joy in the transition.

This past May concluded with three of my four graduating from college the same week. I was overjoyed in planning the celebrations and acknowledging each one individually as this has been one of my core values in raising quadruplets.

The days following the graduation I felt a shift. I physically experienced a buoyancy, an independent mindset and an anticipation of new life. I was not expecting to feel any different because most parents don’t mention college graduation as the “big” moment in parenthood.

As I contemplated this new shift, a picture came to mind. I saw a big white anchor in the sea with four smaller anchors attached. Each smaller anchor shifted and moved to ground itself in a space near the large anchor. It was secure and knew how to settle deep in the floor of the ocean.

I understood this metaphor to show me the four “anchors” are now secure on their own and no longer need me to hold them steady. This shift gave me a new buoyancy and energy flow to live the next season of my life with some new found energy.

I can see them as a whole and can truly let go of “fixing” problems. The worry over the “what ifs” have no place in my mind and heart. We are all still in the “sea of life” together, near one another and available for a steady hand when needed. This is a comfort to my soul.

They have their faith, their character, their support and their gifts to grow and someday be the centering anchor for their own families, the greatest gifts from heaven!

This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast.

Hebrews 6:19