I am kicking off a new project at work, and one of the many things that I need to do today is to define the milestones for the project timeline. By definition, a milestone is an action or event marking a significant change or stage in development. My project milestones will include requirements signed off, development work complete, and passing user acceptance testing of the changes to the trading system.
While the same by definition, my project milestones are quite different from life milestones. For Little Chirp on his life journey, tomorrow’s milestone is getting his learner’s permit. Well that is assuming that he completed the six hours of online coursework that one has to complete before they can take the test to get their permit. I keep meaning to check on that. Life has been hectic.
He is at that stage of life where big milestones are happening one by one. Of course, last fall he started high school. This year is his learner’s permit, and then next year he gets his driver’s license the same year that Brainy Bird turns 21. The year after that Brainy Bird will graduate from college, and then Little Chirp will be off to college a year later.
Some years back, I wrote a blog post charting out all of these life milestones for the boys, and they still seemed off in the future. The Years Ahead for My Birds – Run with me (runwithme35.com) Now, we are more than half way through living them.
When I wrote the previous post about the years ahead for my boys, I did not appreciate all of the milestones that lay ahead. I simply thought of those that happen on a calendar. Brainy Bird’s journey taught me that there are so many more exciting life milestones. Getting one’s first job, first significant other, that first college acceptance letter, submitting the deposit at the chosen college, pulling out of the driveway with the car packed for college, the first internship, Spring Break trips, finding one’s first apartment. The list goes on and on.
This stage of parenting is among the hardest; it is also among the most rewarding. Yes, I stress and I worry, but I know that my sons are on the right paths. My heart is full and my heart is happy.
On a micro level, today will consist of me working and doing chores around the house, while Little Chirp has a teenager’s only birthday party at a bowling alley. The kid loves to bowl. He enjoyed picking out the food for his party, and I love the kids that he chose to invite. On a macro level, tomorrow is the big day that we head to the DMV for his learner’s permit.
My heart is full. My heart is happy.