Moments

Life isn’t a matter of milestones, but of moments.

Rose Kennedy

I have always been a Jackie Kennedy fan and I still have a collection of books about her dating back to the 1970’s. I admire her intelligence, grace and style. Like all of us she was flawed and that made me like her even more. Few could withstand the constant critique and criticism she faced on a daily basis. She gained much and gave up more.

Which is how I came to read, White House by the Sea, written by Kate Storey. It is a history of what came to be called, the Kennedy Compound. The main house, in Hyannis Port, was purchased by the Kennedys in 1928 and other family remembers built or bought houses surrounding that house in later years. Rose Kennedy lived there until her death, at 104, in 1995, The book chronicles those years. The family suffered such extraordinary tragedy during that time.

After reading the book, I came across the quote above, by Rose Kennedy. She certainly lived many milestones in her lifetime. What’s interesting is her focus on the moments. I have often wondered how she coped with all the devastation in her life. Maybe, this is part of the answer. She focused on the moments, not the milestones. She had a small hut built on the beach and would go there to be by herself. To read, pray or watch the sunset. It was a place to appreciate the little things.

Maybe, as Rose Kennedy did, we might step back and live in the moment. The perfect cup of morning coffee, the flock of geese flying noisily overhead, a crocus pushing its way up through what is left of the snow. These are the everyday events that make up our lives. It would be a shame if we became so consumed by the big things, we missed the important little things.