Embracing the Empty Nest

Until I figure out how to post pictures you may be stuck with musings from me. Not so long ago I had a problem with the term Empty Nest. I would not go to any activity that defined the participants as Empty Nesters. I felt it had such a negative connotation. Like going without something, lacking in some way. Allen knew of my aversion to the term and tried to come up with his own definition for this time of life. He came up with Phase Two. I shot that down quickly saying it sounded like something you would hear at a rocket launch. Being an engineer, that made him like the term even more. Not satisfied, I let the matter rest for awhile. Then the other day when considering a new blog, the image of the empty nest came to mind. But this time I considered it in a different way. The mother bird knows when it is time for her babies to fly, oftentimes before they do, and has to push them out of the nest. Then I pictured myself doing the same to all five of my little birdies and saying, "Fly birdie, fly!" to each of them. And guess what? They flew! I'm so proud of all of my soaring birdies. And so it begins with an empty nest...