Last Friday night my daughters came over and there was one of those moments–those double take moments–when you feel like your world has changed and it all started with a spilled glass of Cola (not even name-brand Coke)!

One of my daughters had left it on the table where one of the grandkids could reach it, and it went over, in a cascade of stickiness, drenching the dining room table and parquet floor.

There is nothing that stickifies floors as much as cola!

Absolutely nothing!

And I’ve ALWAYS felt that sticky floors are the WORST!

That little ‘tic tic’ as your feet try to free themselves from the floor–YUCK!

And raising four children you can bet that it was inevitable! Right after I had just mopped the floor that one of them would spill something with sugar in it. Usually juice–but like I said, pop was the worst!

And as the cup tipped out its content and even before I could finish groaning ALL three of my daughters sprang into action.

“Don’t worry Mom!”

“We’ll take care of it!”

“Like it never even happened!”

One sopping it up on the floor, another picking up the cup and dabbing at the table and another rinsing and repeating.

There was something about the way they jumped into action!

It was kind of a weird deja vu in that I come from three sisters.

I’m the middle one, and about twenty-five years ago that would have been me and my older and younger sisters jumping into action and I had the weirdest CIRCLE OF LIFE kind of feeling!

And it was like I could see the future, with my daughters taking over the hosting duties, and me sitting on the sidelines–a guest at the festivities like my mom and mother in law are now.

It’s amazing how our lives are paralleled.

My mom had three girls and a boy, in that order.

So did I.

And I got married at seventeen.

Two of my daughters got married at nineteen and the third at 22.

My mom was a young grandma and so am I. And all the great grandparents on our side are still alive, my mom being only nineteen years older than me.

Then tonight I was watching an interview with this Princeton professor named Slaughter who’d written an article for Atlantic monthly that said for the most part women can’t have it all. That is career and family, and I think no, she’s wrong. They can, but unfortunately in this society they do it backwards. They do the career first and then the kids.

You should do the family thing first.

That’s more time sensitive.

I had my first at 22 and by 32 I was done.

When the twins were two years old I began writing. They’re 25 now. So while they were growing I was writing and developing my craft, and most importantly living my life so that by this time I would have something to say!

I really don’t think I could have ‘planned’ it any better!

I can’t find much of any wasted time in my life at all!

EVERYTHING has been necessary! Even the eight years it took to get published!

Except of course the fact is I didn’t ‘plan’ it at all.

At 50 years old I have eleven books published, have had my books recognized with awards, masha Allah AND I have the family! I nice healthy family unit where we all get along and there is peace at our gatherings.

Masha Allah I am incredibly blessed and I always tell myself that if it never gets any better than this–this is pretty darn wonderful!

Alhamdu lillah!