...across the room to talk about legacy's....

This morning I read a short article by Ron and Gilbert Beers on leaving your legacy. I thought about the wonderful people in my life who are spending Christmas in heaven and how they affected my life ... past, present and future. This article made me think about the legacy that I want to leave. They quote the book of Psalms in the Bible where it says this: "But as for me, I will sing about your power. I will shout with joy each morning because of your unfailing love. For you have been my refuge, a place of safety in the day of distress. O My Strength, to you I sing praises, for you, O God, are my refuge, the God who shows me unfailing love." To me there is just nothing more important to pass along to my family than God's mercy, His unfailing love, and that refuge and place of safety He has been in my life. I want my family to see God as the One who created them and therefore knows them better than they know themselves; loves them more than they could ever love and to see Him as a Father like no other. The article stated: " Many people think of God as being angry and judgmental, pointing his disapproving finger at our sins and failures. In reality, God is both holy and merciful. In his holiness, he calls us to moral and virtuous living; in his mercy he is willing to forgive us, and he loves us even when we fail. The psalmist is rejoicing that he can rely upon God's mercy, which becomes a protection against the destructive forces of evil." I think it is important to think about the kind of legacy we want to pass on to our children, their children, etc. Depending on how we were raised, we might pass along all the disappointments, hurts, frustrations, attitudes and pain of our own up bringing or we can break the destructive cycles of our pasts and give our children a legacy that will help them be whole and equipped human beings. I saw a lot of little children at the front of the church participating in a Christmas production this morning. They were so cute, uninhibited, adorable and talented. I couldn't help but wonder who their mommies and daddies were and what kind of legacy they are preparing to leave their children. Every day, every decision, every reaction, every word and gesture will comprise the legacy that we leave for our family. It's worth a little contemplation, I think.

....across the room to say THANK YOU....

CHRISTMAS! What a celebration! Everybody wants to be in on the festivities and many who don't even believe in the real reason for this celebration get completely absorbed in the giving and receiving of this special season. Personally I am amazed at the way the people of our city get involved to make sure everyone has a special Christmas by donating food and gifts to be distributed by various organizations.

Most of my gifts have been sent by now and I have been the recipient of a few gifts myself by now. That brings me to the reason for this post. Some months ago we sent a wedding gift because we had not been able to attend the wedding. It was a gift of money. A month or so later I realized we had not heard from these people by way of a telephone call or a thank you note. Since we had just received a call from a charitable organization we had donated to six months ago to inform us they received the cheque just that day I began to wonder if our gift had been received by this couple. I contacted them to find out that they did not receive it. A few days later a very tired looking envelope ended up in our mail box. It looked like someone had used it as a coaster for their coffee cup! In fact it looked so bad I had to buy a new card to send the gift again. That is one reason we need to send thank you notes but not the main reason. I don't know how many gifts I have sent by now and never received a thank you of any kind. I'm left to wonder whether the gift was ever received and I can't help but wonder if it was even appreciated. The gift I received yesterday was a good reminder of how much time a friend will invest in finding something really special, wrapping it in pretty paper and sending it to my house. A gift of money is someone saying "I want to give you something you would really like, so here is some money so that you can choose it for yourself". Whether it is a gift of money or a gift chosen by someone I think it deserves to be acknowledged. There is no substitute for a hand written note (everyone loves mail!) but a telephone call is a great way of thanking your family and friends as well!

May you enjoy the gift of giving and receiving and let's all remember to say "THANKS"!

...across the room for my family...

As I was tidying up my kitchen this morning I wondered what I should take off the counters before Christmas to make room for all the extras that always end up on the counter during family gatherings. Then the thought hit me that "this Christmas there will be no baby bottles, formula, soothers, or the DREADED SIPPY CUPS cluttering up my kitchen counter! Our grandchildren have all been there, done that, and they are all GROWN UP! This will all change again for next Christmas (and I can't wait to have a baby around again) but for this year things will be different. I think I feel the same way about my grandchildren as I did about my children. I loved the wee baby stage. They are so adorable and make complete idiots of the adults (remember cooing at the babies to make them coo back, cheering when they poop and laughing at their garbled baby talk?). Then there's the stage when they'll sit alone in the middle of the floor and never go anywhere! There is so much freedom in the very brief stage before they crawl all over the place and end up under the couch fast asleep like one of ours did! The walking and talking stage is always a real highlight even though they wear out the adults as they walk where they shouldn't and talk endlessly, asking questions and making comments about everything in sight. Our grandbabies are ages 3, 5, 7, and 9 so there are lots of conversations on every level and lots of surprise observations from inquisitive little minds! If I had to choose one particular stage of development I just couldn't do it. I love them all. I cannot wait for my house to be filled with noises from these special little ones in my life and I can't wait for the adults to try to get in some semblance of real conversation above all the "noise"!

I'm counting the days!