#100

Well, here it is, the 100th post. I was actually thinking about which ground-breaking event I would write about for this. Marriage? Birth? Adventures? Well, quite unexpectedly my not-so-little sister inspired me to write on the thing I love most of all, my family.

My sweet sister called us from the middle of nowhere (really and truly nowhere, a 25 mile hike into the wilderness of Yellowstone) to talk. I quite literally had to hold back my nerves as I listened to her describe the conditions of the "camp" she was tenting at. All alone. By herself. Writing this now my heart is in my throat, surely not to come down until she calls tomorrow, safe and sound back at her residence hall.

Her talk inspired a run, and the run got me to thinking. My family has grown and grown (how can it actually do otherwise? even when a family member passes away they are still part of the family) and especially this year as we said hello to our little Harrison in May. My sister's adventures made me look at Harrison and think, will you do these scary things one day? Will you call me from the wilderness and tell me there are no bear paw prints around you (very reassuring)? Will you travel to a distant country and not come back for a year?

How can a parent get to that state where you know there isn't anything you can do but listen, give advice and wish them the best? I mean do all that without getting an ulcer from stressing. How can you protect someone you love and still let them discover the world? I wish I owned a safety umbrella that would stretch from Mexico past LA up to Yellowstone and across to Michigan. I wish I could be with both my sisters, as if my presence alone protects from anything, but it would certainly make me feel better.

It always comes down to trust. Trust that little Katie knows what she is doing. Trust that Harrison is sleeping soundly in his crib. Trust that the doctor has sufficient knowledge. Trust the pilot can keep a plane up in the air (something I need to tell myself each and every time I board a plane). And trust that at the end of the day the people I love so dearly know it.