Around the bend

    Years ago I did about a 15 mile hike at girls camp.  Every year the girls that were fourth years had to do a hike to get certified for that year.  The hike consisted of carrying a pack with all of your supplies, hiking, setting up a camp, and doing all the other camping stuff that you do.  I don't remember too much from the hike, but I do remember something that we were told repeatedly during the hike.  Of course with the heavy packs we were tired and continually asked how much longer we had until we got to the camp.  Our leaders would say, "just down the road and around the bend".  After about a dozen times of going around a bend and not being there we should have known that it was something that our leaders were telling us to keep us going and maybe to keep us from whining so much. 
     I have been thinking a lot lately how "just around the bend" has been relevant in my life lately.  I have been thinking about how at the beginning of this year I would have never imagined that I would have the life that I have now.  First we added Gracie to our family and she has been a great companion to us.  Then just a few months after that we welcomed Isaac into our family.  At the beginning of the year things seemed so hopeless, but I did not know how great things were going to be soon.  If I had been able to peak around the bend, I would not have felt so hopeless. 
   Of course life does not work like that we can't peak at what is going to happen in the future and when we are in the middle of what is happening in our lives it seems that it will never get better.  I would like to say that after all the years that we were trying to adopt and went through so many disappointments that I learned a lot of things.  I am not sure how much I really learned because sometimes I was just too full of bitterness and anger to see anything good in what our situation was.  However, what I think that I did learn is that it is important to have hope because you might have to turn around a lot of corners and feel that you are never going to get to the destination that you want, but eventually you will turn a corner and things will work out.  I have realized how glad I am that we did not quit when things seemed so bleak and hopeless because we were so close to where we needed to be and if we would have given up we would not have the happiness in our lives that we do now. 
    OK, I know that, this probably sounds a little cheesy but I was thinking that maybe I should write about this in case someone feels the way that I used to and they just need to know that things will get better.