When our younger son left home about 4 years ago, it was a wrench, but because our elder son was still living with us at the time, I didn’t give the so-called empty nest syndrome much prayerful thought. But when our elder son bought his own home a year or two ago, and was preparing to move out, I knew I needed to pray more deeply about this new chapter in my life.
Mrs. Eddy reassures us, “False fears are foes, truth tatters those, when understood…” What were these false fears? Feeling cut off from our sons, feeling alone or no longer needed, no longer having a sense of purpose? As I prayed about this next phase of my experience, I reasoned that since God’s goodness is spiritual, we may gain new views of it, but we never lose it. So if one form of goodness is changing in our experience, we can be assured that another form is appearing. Mrs. Eddy says, “Each successive stage of experience unfolds new views of divine goodness and love…” I knew that both our sons were moving forward according to God’s plan for them, and if our sons’ departure from the family home was Mind-impelled and Love-directed, then this blessing would have to include Martin and me, even though humanly speaking it was hard to see them go. God’s goodness doesn’t grow up and leave, so I stayed close to the truth that “what blesses one, blesses all…” , and I knew that (as the hymn tells us) “no child can ever stray beyond the compass of infinitude…” I was also included in that compass of infinitude, so in truth we could never be separated, we would always be at one with God and therefore at one with each other. No one can ever be cut off from or separated from good.
One morning, as I was praying about this situation, a few words came to thought in the shape of a poem. I grabbed pencil and paper, and wrote the words down as they unfolded to my waiting thought. It was as if Mind was speaking directly to me about our sons, and I just knew in that moment that all would be well, and so it has proved. This was the poem that came to me that morning:
“An empty nest was looming,
with children leaving home,
a rising fear now lurking…
the fear of being alone.
Then the angel of His presence,
with tender, loving care
spoke directly to this mother
as she bowed her head in prayer:
“You and your precious children
are forever one with Soul,
how can there be an empty nest
when I have made you whole?”
For all the good that I and my family have experienced this year, I am immensely grateful.