What a wonderful sound, the noise of boys.  Movement, chatter, whispers, giggling, competition, crashing, bickering, loudness, more competition and laughter, repeat.  This is the noise that I have been trying to silence since it is so constant with my boys.  For nineteen years I have been trying to hush them.

Recently, the noise level in our home has lessened since our oldest son has moved 1,300 miles away for college.  It changed when their older sister went off to college but something about breaking up these brothers is much more noticeable.  Their whole lives they have been homeschooled, which means they’ve shared the same house, schoolroom, cafeteria, mealtime, playground and playmates.

Having a quieter house has been a nice break for me but it is definitely a reminder of my heartache since there are family members missing.  Slowly, our sons that still live at home are finding their new normal with the absence of one of their brothers.  The nerf gun wars, ping pong matches and outside play is returning, however, I find myself not hushing them, letting them play in the rain and even get muddy.  I have been turning football on the tv, even when they aren’t in the room.  Ahhhh, the noise of boys is now what I long for.  

‍