Change of direction & not changing

The other morning I was thinking about the past few months.
I do that a lot lately.
I keep telling myself to move on.
Well, it finally hit me.
I can't just move on.
It's different than that.
For months now I have been at a cross roads in my life.
Standing still, waiting to know which way to turn.
Which road to take.
Now I know.
Sam came into my life for a reason.
I know that.
Sure, it wasn't the reason I had been hoping and praying for.
But I know I was meant to get to know her.
I am so glad that she found me!
I honestly wouldn't change anything I have been through these past few months.
I don't even know if I would change when she told me she for sure wanted to keep the girls.
It was all good for me, and my family, to go through.
We learned so much.
And now we have a new friend, who is very dear to us.
Samantha.
And she has two little girls we can love just like we love all of our friends' kids.
So now I know......I am not moving on.....I have had a change of direction.
The Lord stepped into my life and shifted where he wanted me to go.
He changed my heart in so many ways, and taught me so many things.
I am moving forward, my life changing for the better.
I am becoming a better person.
That's what life does for us.
We have trials, hard times.
And we grab hold of them, hold on tight, and make it through.
Then we look back, and are amazed at where we were when we started, and where we are now.
My dad used to tell me that the really challenging times in our lives, (like when Dad and Mom lost their little girl when she was less than 2 weeks old) are like being thrown into a raging river. At first it's all we can do to keep our heads above water. We live for the second, one thing at a time. Then we float down for a ways, and we find something to grab onto--or the river slows down. After a while we are eventually able to get to the bank of the river and climb out. When it's all said and done, we look back at the river and are amazed that we made it through. Amazed that we are still alive. We walk away, alive and well--but not the same. Not the same at all. We walk away a better person. We know more and are better for it. And when it's all over and people ask if we could do it all over again, what would we change? If we take the time to really think about it, think about how much better we are for going through it, we have to answer that we wouldn't change a thing.
Not a single thing.