To Every Thing There is a Season

A farmer purchased an old, run-down, abandoned farm with plans to turn it into a thriving enterprise. The fields were grown over with weeds, the farmhouse was falling apart, and the fences were broken down.  During his first day of work, the town preacher stops by to bless the man's work, saying, "May you and God work together to make this the farm of your dreams!"   A few months later, the preacher stops by again to call on the farmer.  Lo and behold, it's a completely different place.  The farm house is completely rebuilt and in excellent condition, there are plenty of cattle and other livestock happily munching on feed in well-fenced pens, and the fields are filled with crops planted in neat rows.  "Amazing!" the preacher says. "Look what God and you have accomplished together!"  "Yes, reverend," says the farmer, "but remember what the farm was like when God was working it alone!"

Well, I feel like this is my story this year.  My yard has suffered terrible neglect from me.  I didn’t plant a vegetable garden like I usually do, as I am still suffering from Kakorrhaphiophobia (an abnormal fear of failure) because over the last 3 or 4 years I can’t seem to even grow a weed in it.  I built raised beds, brought in new soil, and did everything I could think of to make it happen, but, no cigar.  I swear I think my garden is cursed.  Seventy-five days of 100 plus degree temperatures and a terrible drought certainly haven’t helped.  I am doing good to keep the new grass I planted this year alive.  As a result, I don’t have much to blog about when it comes to my garden right now, but, with God’s help, I do have plans for a fall cleanup, a new start next spring, and I’ll pray for rain and carry an umbrella!

Despite the barren wilderness that is my yard, there are some sweet little blessings that come along to remind me of God’s faithfulness.  Little frogs and a few bigger ones come to visit me quite often because I do water my potted plants faithfully and I also have a fountain that they must be drawn to because of the sound of the splashing of water.  Volunteer sweetpeas from another season made a debut by a stump, a remnant of a Walnut tree we had to cut down because of disease.  The persistence of plants and trees that have been cut away to send up shooters and re-establish remind me of how determined life is to hold on.  I still feel in awe when I walk outside and smell my rosemary bush and see the pink blooms on my Mom’s Bougainvillea.  I used to babysit her plants every summer while she traveled, but last summer I told her goodbye for the last time…God found a place in His garden for her.

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven… Ecclesiastes 3:1

Me, A Grandma?

"A grandchild fills a space in your heart that you never knew

was empty." – Unknown

My last child left the nest about 4 years ago.  What ensued was a grief I never expected, it is called Empty Nest Syndrome.  Empty Nest Syndrome is not a term you'll find in many medical text books, but Webster’s defines it as, “The emotional letdown often experienced by a parent whose children have grown up and moved away from home”.  So, I cried until my cryer hurt, prayed, went to counseling, put on my granny panties and decided to redefine what my purpose would be for the next quarter century of my life (God willing!).  In this area of my life, I came to the conclusion that my grandchildren are the next best thing to kids!   Maybe even better!  I don’t have the parental responsibilities of discipline, structure, etc., etc., so I am free to be me and build lasting memories with these little people who call me “Grandma”.

My grandkids line up as follows:  Katelyn (21), Elizabeth (8), August (6), and Kaylee (7 months).  OK, so I was not the Grandma who rushed in at birth and spent every free moment after that trying to steal the g’kids away from Mom and Dad.  I was there at birth mind you, but I had some adjusting to do! (expressed with my best Ricky Ricardo accent)  I was in the midst of the grief of losing my own children, trying to deal with my own identity crisis, and just plain exhausted!  However, during this long, grueling process of trying to “redefine” my role in life, God blessed me with a new, fresh perspective; I now realize that I have missed out on a lot of precious time already and have some catching up to do.  I have a lot to offer those special little creatures and they have a whole world of fulfillment and fun to offer me, so off on this journey I go.

I have researched some ways to spend fun, quality time with the grandkids.  Here are some fall/winter projects that sparked my interest:

·         Let them decorate old pillowcases with fabric markers. This will be a nice memento whenever they sleep over at my house.

·         Snap photos with a digital camera all evening long. Print pictures out while they sleep, then have them assemble sleepover scrapbooks to take home in the morning.

·         Take drawings they give me, or special cards they make, frame them and hang in a special place at eye level for them.

·         Host a cooking show with them as the star.

·         Start a collection with them and talk about it.

·         Start a journal and when they sleep over, ask them what they would like to remember about their day, what they want to do when they grow up, stuff that happens at school, etc and write down the answers and have them draw a picture on the following page.

Of course for the oldest and youngest, these activities are not viable.  The oldest is out and about in the world and finding a life for her.  The little one, well, she dictates my activities!

“Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their fathers.” – Proverbs 17:6

Welcome to my first post!  The writer in me knows that I should keep a journal, scrapbook, or write a book of poems or short stories to pass along to my loved ones and heirs the passions of my heart.  But, you know, for some reason (probably too many commitments) that never happens.  I have been thinking about doing a blog for some time now, and have finally decided to dive in!  In my blog I hope to share all the things that really make me tick, that pull at my heartstrings, that express to the world who I am.  So, pull up a chair, follow along, and share with me this beautiful life!  Pictures of my pathetic garden and grandchildren coming soon!  God Bless.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.  Phillipians 4:8