Voice of a kid off in another room: “Mom.”

Mom’s reply: “Now what?”

If you are a parent reading this, I am willing to risk some hard cash that you have uttered this phrase.

You have either said it in the above context or upon hearing a not-too-distant crashing sound, a scream or a prolonged silence.

The phrase is usually uttered by parents as they are walking toward the sound or silence. The answer comes upon arriving to the scene of some kind of mess, mischief, chaos or creation.

But there are other contexts for which this question fits. The spring of each year is the perfect season to keep this question in your front pocket.

Let’s think about this for a moment.

You have just baptized your sweet infant — now what?

You have just received your first holy Communion — now what?

You have been confirmed — now what?

You are graduating from high school, college or graduate school — now what?

You are just married — now what?

You are being ordained — now what?

You are retiring from years of regular working — now what?

You are widowed — now what?

Easter Sunday has come and gone — now what?

There are so many moments for which we spend much time, energy and money working on and striving for.  And of course the journey to any meaningful thing, event or milestone is where our education and formation takes place.

Ernest Hemingway said, “It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.” While that is so true, we should pause along the roads we travel to pick up some motivation to mold what lies beyond the particular goal.

I can remember all the specific moments in life that I just couldn’t wait for. I couldn’t wait to turn 13 so I would be a teenager. Then it was getting into high school and turning 16 so I could drive. That was a big one. Being a driver meant that the answer to my “now what?” question was that I could go places by myself and really experience independence. Being 16 and getting a license was my first ticket to cool — or so I thought.

All the while my mother would say, “Don’t wish your life away.” I had no idea what she meant back then because all I could focus on was the next milestone and what each one would do for me. To be honest, I sometimes missed magic moments that come along in a journey and sometimes I took those milestones and filed them in my memory bank of “been there, done that,” and quickly moved on to the next thing, dismissing the lessons.

Some of the stories and columns published in this newspaper can help us think about the “now whats” in our own lives.

The story about Kylie Wicker and her new prosthetic is a perfect example of “now what?” If you were to ask Kylie and her parents, I know they could come up with so many examples of what happens next.  Being able to answer questions about your life and its direction definitively is a true gift and it takes some reflection.

In this season of graduations, weddings, special birthdays, anniversaries, etc., we should take some time, slow down and think about what comes next. What responsibility comes with your graduation or confirmation? Will you take on those tasks and allow them to guide you to your next goal? Will your journeys to each milestone help you set standards for your life? Or are such things as confirmation just a ritual marking a finish line?

What about your faith? We all traveled through Lent making promises, sacrifices to cleanse ourselves of sin in hopes of embracing Easter joy with a renewed sense of God’s love and mercy for us. Have we packed away our fervent practices with the Easter decorations and reverted to our old routines?

Perhaps it’s time to remind ourselves and our families to take some time and reflect on “now what?” What’s your next step? Where will you go and who do you want to be and where do God and faith belong in your quest to get from point to point in your life? I think answering these questions together can bring us closer to God and each other.

One of my children turns 30 and another 21 this month. I think I’ll include this “Now what?” question in their birthday cards. After all, they’ve heard it before.