I think I’ve mentioned my Aunt Andy on here before. She was full of wisdom.
One thing I remember her saying on more than one occasion was “We have eternity to figure out these family relationships.”
The situation I’m remembering was a stage where one of the teenagers (my cousin) was really butting heads with her dad (my uncle).
Many moms would have been worried about it. They would have been constantly stepping in, trying to smooth things over. They may have tried acting as a mediator, trying to manage the relationship and make sure they got along better.
But not Aunt Andy. I’m sure that wasn’t her favorite stage- having her husband and daughter fighting all the time. But instead of getting caught up in their drama, she decided to believe there was no rush. They had eternity together, and they would for sure figure out how to love and appreciate each other at some point. This arguing phase was just part of their learning process.
Luckily it didn’t take eternity. It turned out to be a fairly short phase, and father and daughter now have a great relationship.
This is such a good reminder for me. When my kids aren’t getting along, when extended family relationships feel strained, or even when I’ve drifted apart from a friend that I love, it’s helpful to remember that we have eternity to work on our relationships. There is no rush, and nothing is going wrong. This is how we learn.
And we have eternity to figure out these family relationships.
