Grandchildren - The Keepers of my Heart

I love summer - it means my grandsons get to come visit and we get to play and oh what a marvelous time we have. This month it was boating, hiking, beaching, snuggling, train rides and more. I was exhausted at the end of each day - but oh so happy.

Why is it that we are able to relax and enjoy our grandchildren easier than we ever could with our own children? I have spent a great deal of time pondering this and I decided the main reason for me is that I am just too tired to keep up with everything so I prioritize on the fun stuff and let the rest go! Instead of running around like a crazy person I sit back and enjoy those two boys. Now, don't get me wrong, I still have OCD's aplenty and find myself doing laundry several times a day (they only needed one outfit really as it was washed and ready for the next day before I went to bed)... and I did tidy the house and start the dishwasher before calling it a day. But I am not at all as particular as I was when raising my 2 daughters, in those days everything had to be perfect! My daughters tease me to this day about telling them to "clean up that mess and find something to do" or "you can only have one toy out at a time" (which makes Legos hard to play with) or "put your toys away in their proper home (I organized everything in "families" including how you load the dishwasher) ... ok even I think I sound like a crazy person. BUT, in my defense our home was always clean and ready for company - even though none of my friends wanted to come over because my clean home made them uncomfortable!

So back to the grandsons, with them I just want to snuggle and play and enjoy every second I get with them. My heart is happy when I am with them.The material things in life matter less. My family matters most. With age comes the realization of your own mortality and the fact that you are not going to be around forever. Relationships and family become top of the list - which is where they should have been to begin with. But we get  caught up in living life - as hectic as it is - and before we know it our kids are grown and out of the house living hectic lives of their own. Don't get me wrong, we are busy doing good things - but we keep ourselves busier than God ever intended. We forget to slow down and smell the roses - in fact we don't even notice that there are roses! I see children being kept so busy they don't have time to just play and be kids. My husbands best memories from his childhood are the countless hours he spent roaming the mountainside with his buddies. When the grandsons are here he loves nothing more than to work in the garden with them teaching them how to plant trees and dig weeds or relive his childhood by taking them out to roam the hills looking for fossils and cool rocks.

My goal for the rest of the year is to slow down, enjoy more fully the beautiful world we live in, spend more time with my kids and worry less about the things that don't matter. It is in our unhurried moments that we can see more clearly and hear what God wants us to hear. He loves us so much, but we are often so busy with life that we don't even hear what he has to say. I know that my life is better when God is in the details - without his guidance and direction I can't make it where I need to go. And more than anything I want my sweet grandsons to know that for themselves. I want them to know how to focus on God and to recognize his voice. I can't teach them something I don't do myself.

Lessons from Uncle Jerry

I love my Uncle Jerry so much – and miss him every day. Through the power of example he taught me so many things and I try each day to be just a little bit like him! I feel his presence still as he sends his love and support from heaven – ever working in behalf of others.

·         Jerry had a child-like love for the Lord and for the gospel of Jesus Christ. He trusted and believed in all that we are taught about a loving and compassionate Father in Heaven and Savior Jesus Christ.

·         Jerry loved me and my little family with his whole heart – unconditionally. No matter what drama or dysfunctional chaos came with me – when I showed up at his door I was always welcome, always loved.

·         Jerry handled life with a sense of humor beyond compare. I could always count on him to lift my spirits and make me laugh. Jerry was fun to be around!

·         Jerry didn’t judge – he just didn’t do it. His compassion and kindness towards others was endless.

·         Jerry was one of the hardest working people I know. He could work circles around everyone. He never stopped – even if he didn’t feel like it he would do it.

·         Jerry did the hard stuff! He did things that were difficult for him and he wasn’t too crazy about; but he did them anyway no matter how difficult it was. He was not a quitter – he was a doer! If we could all live our life just a little bit like Jerry, be more loving like Jerry, more obedient like Jerry… the world would be a much better place!

      1 Timothy 4:12 Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.

Puzzles, Poop and Plugs!

I love puzzles! I always have. But they have come to mean even more to me the past 5 years as I have been retired (reluctantly) and have so much more time on my hands. Working on a puzzle has become a quiet time when I am taught by the spirit as I ponder things I have studied and talk to my Heavenly Father about everything in my heart. As I was meticulously preparing my 1000 piece puzzle this morning, separating the straight edges and turning over the others, (because doing a puzzle without painstakingly preparing first is an exercise in chaos and confusion...anyone that has worked on a puzzle with me knows I am pretty strict about this step) my mind was flooded with the following thoughts: Do I take just as much time meticulously preparing myself spiritually to face each day? Am I just as obsessed (OCD #210) about everything being in perfect order in my spiritual life as I am about my puzzles? Am I doing the prep work of reading my scriptures and praying so the Lord can be a part of my day? Am I reading from uplifting books so the spirit has something to instruct and teach me with? Am I properly prioritizing my day? Where do I place my importance?

Where does the poop come in? (aren't you glad I didn't include a picture of that) .. when you have 2 dogs it is impossible to enjoy your yard if you haven’t committed to scooping the poop every morning. Is it a fun job – NOPE. However, if I didn’t take the time to do it – my yard would be so unpleasant that I would never spend time out there. (not to mention my neighbors wouldn’t like me very much due to the horrendous odor permeating from my yard). Therefore, I don’t have a problem with that daily task. Just like my daily scooping makes my yard a delightful place to be – my daily routine of communing with my Father in Heaven and personal study insures my days are more enjoyable and full of peace. And when things don't go as expected (as is often the case) I am more spiritually prepared to handle what life throws at me!

Now for the plug – as I sat down to type my thoughts on my laptop I noticed that the battery power showed almost dead. That was strange as I had just taken it off the charger! Much to my surprise I found that the power cord was NOT plugged into the wall. A lot of good it did my battery to be plugged in all night to a power cord not drawing any power. Another thought came to mind: How can I expect to draw power from my Father in Heaven if I am not “plugged” in? My daily devotion to my Father in Heaven through prayer and scripture study, through service and good works is part of my divine connection - it is what charges me and prepares me to face each day. This is a crazy and wicked world in which we live. If I hope to be resistant against the evil workings of the adversary then I must be willing to surrender my will to my Father in Heaven. I must be willing to do all that is required to have his spirit with me. Thank heavens that every day is a new day for me to learn to meticulously organize and prepare myself to face the day. Thank heavens the Lord is patient and continues to extend his arm towards me in patience and love. Thank heavens the spirit is willing and able to teach me through the small and simple things that I can understand like puzzles, poop and plugs!

John 8:29 And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.