The River of Life

Over the years it has seemed to me that life is much like a river.  During childhood we tend to be in the quiet, lazy part of the river, perhaps floating along on a raft.  During adolescence, the current picks up a bit and then in early adulthood, it feels like we jump in a boat.  That boat takes off quickly, and before you know it, you add things to the watercraft.  It gets heavier and moves even faster.  At times you wish for a break where you could pull over and rest a bit.
Before you know it, you are entrenched in relationships, children, jobs and all that comes along with these things.  It feels like the boat is going faster and faster and no chance comes along to pull over to the shore.  Then maybe in old age, the current slows a bit as we again hit the quiet part of the river.

When I was young, one of my favorite books was A Lantern in Her Hand.  I read it many times.  The main character had dreams as a young girl of marrying a doctor, moving to New York and becoming an opera singer.  In reality, she married a farmer, had several children and did not become a singer.  She often would say, "Please stop time just for a moment", but that never happened.  Time keeps moving on and with it goes our lives.

So I wonder if after we have maneuvered our boat over miles of the river, surviving the rapids along the way (life), do we empty into the wide expanse of the ocean (death) where we may finally have calm waters and an end to the worry of time?  Some thing to think about.

Thought for the day:  Life is the sum of all your choices.  ~Albert Camus