'Disenchantment, whether it is a minor disappointment or a major shock, is the signal that things are moving into transition in our lives.'William Throsby Bridges Looked up this quote while laying next to our youngest son who is nursing a 102-degree fever today. This in itself is not a huge deal, but it is made a little worse by the fact that yesterday we drove 7 hours and 500 miles to get him to a soccer tournament this weekend.… but instead of heading to the fields bright and early this morning we headed out to CVS for a thermometer. The good part is that it is just a run of the mill virus (no strep) and the even better news is that his often wayward immune response seems to be behaving itself… Despite these bright spots our little man is pretty bummed to be sitting in a hotel room while his teammates play for the State Cup. He is about as serious about this sport as a 12-year-old can be, so sitting out on a once a year big tournament hits hard.I suppose the timing of this could just be random, but this is a tough kid who has a gnarly auto-immune illness, yet in 7 years of serious year around soccer play he has only missed two games. Ever.So, as we sit here in this dang hotel room, packing up to make the 500-mile-long drive home in the morning, I am looking at his soccer cleats and taking into serious consideration the fact that the only place they saw this weekend was the urgent care clinic.This Momma bear is scratching her head…. and wondering what might be percolating in the Universe for her lil’ man cub. I am not worried about his health- it’s better than it has been in five years… but I do have to wonder if the Universe isn’t making some sort of commentary for us to listen to…Time will tell, and much like on that 500 mile drive we will take again tomorrow, we are just going to have to watch the road signs and follow where they lead. 

Needed growth rarely comes easy or feels good. Even so, it takes us to the next place we are meant to be, and that is the gift of transition.