I keep thinking of a song that begins with the line..."I couldn't sleep at all last night..." And I know why. Just like the children asleep on Christmas Eve with visions of sugar plums, I, too, attempted to sleep with jumbled visions of the movies I have seen and the books I have read in the last four days...dancing in my head.
It all started with the books - WONDER, then on to TUCK EVERLASTING, and finally, the beginning of BREADCRUMBS. Add to that, the movies - THE JUNGLE BOOK, SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES, TUCK EVERLASTING (naturally), and movie trailers for SHAUN THE SHEEP. And that makes for a perfect potion, or porridge of possibilities. Swimming among these scattered thoughts and memories are the changes I saw made, the changes I would have made, and the family adventures of the weekend.
We were like characters in a book or movie...traveling to another land, Oregon. We stayed in a rented home that was an idyllic cottage with most of the trimmings. Two doors down and across the street, the neighbors grew fairy tale fences of tall sunflowers. A short Noah's-Ark-walk on a painted pedestrian crossing brought us into another land of games, dares, contests, and awaiting friendships. The playground was something like we had never seen and was enough to even delight the eleven year old, not to mention us adult children. It was built like a wood maze with towers that boasted fire escape poles, holes with tire swings to climb down to, slides, swings, obstacle courses, and sandbox.
Another playground awaited us at the public park on Columbia River...with a swimming beach. The rainbow scene on the water was a marvelous parade of wind surfers, kite surfers, kayaks, sailboats and swimmers. We toured a Farmer's Market and talked with local artisans while wishing we had deep pockets of money to take home all the treasures we discovered. We visited some amazing and some rather ratty second hand and vintage stores, toured a blown glass garden and shop, and drove the beautiful countryside taking in the winding sights of Hood River...while Mt. Hood grandly stood guard.
On the trip down, we visited Muhultomah Falls and we switched our route on the way back, stopping at Beacon Rock and enjoying a picnic smorgasbord...but to get across the river from Oregon back to Washington, we crossed a bridge...which one usually must do to cross a river. The notable detail of this bridge, though, is that someone had named it. It is probably a name that has gone down in history from the very first rickety crossing that has now become a very sturdy steel structure. It's name struck me and made me think heavenward....THE BRIDGE OF THE GODS. To me, there should be no S, as there is but one God. Still, it keeps me in this cocoon I am in. This protective feeling of being in a fairy tale with a happy ending.
To that point, I know I will have a happy ending. In my heavenly home. My fairy tale moments of life are huge blessings from my God who loves me more than I can fathom. He loves me even more than I can love my husband, my children, my grandchildren, my family, my friends, my dog, and God's people. Every experience I am granted here on earth are gifts from Him. The things I can see and feel and experience...good and bad...teach me more about Him and about love. I am so grateful for the smallest things and in such awe of them, too. With the big things, I am simply overwhelmed, sometimes speechless, and all I can do is praise Him and enjoy. That is what I also wish for anyone reading this. In big moments and small moments...enjoy, and praise Him!
Monday, August 17, 2015
Saturday, January 3, 2015
The Power of Eleven!
What a fun day! One little phone call changed my outlook today as I listened to the exuberance in the voice of the birthday girl! I asked questions and got answers I expected and some I didn't. We sang her the birthday song that is our trademark on their day and now I am having my second cup of coffee over the replays in my mind.
Natalie Grace is eleven years old today and wise for her age, but still a child. She looks so grown up when allowed to wear a little blush and maybe some mascara for special events like the Christmas Eve service at church, but she is still a sweet, innocent child who is always questioning, listening, and learning.
One of her Christmas gifts was a gift certificate for Rock Wall Climbing....something I have never been interested in, but suggested we do it together on my next visit because of her love for it...because I want to get a place in and stay in her world....because her enthusiasm for new adventures entices me to think that I can do it too!
They had planned to go sledding at Paradise on Mt. Ranier today for her birthday. But the snow didn't come. No problem, the new plan is snowshoeing and I can't wait for the pictures. Years ago, before Natalie was born or even planned, Tracy and I had Thanksgiving in Washington with Ted and Robin, which included showshoeing at Paradise. What fun, and what a workout! I secretly wish I were there with them right now instead of airing out the kitchen from the potholder fire I started when I picked the wrong knob to heat water in the tea kettle. (But Jim is working on a Hardee's biscuit recipe that smells heavenly.)
Natalie's mom made a birthday cake from scratch, she proudly tells me, and they are taking it to the lodge and will celebrate with cake when they are done snowshoeing. Can't you just get a picture of that in your mind? This brand new eleven year old was as excited about that as anything!
We bought her an early gift while we were there for Christmas. She loved my purse so we let her pick one out. She wanted a similar color and a lot of zippers like mine has. She also wanted to be able to wear it cross-body like I do in crowds and when traveling. We went through several in a couple stores until she found THE ONE. She carried it around while humoring me, she agreed we could still keep looking and keep an eye on that one. But there was no denying it. After several attempts by Jim to interest her in another...she simply said LETS JUST PAY FOR THIS ONE. Now she tells me with great pride that she takes her purse everywhere she is allowed to and wears it like I do.
I am so grateful Natalie has good parents who have set rules, who have standards of conduct for their children and use common sense to reason out the gray areas of parenting a pre-teen. I am also grateful to this sweet girl, our first grandchild, who we have been learning to grandparent from for these eleven years. She is gentle and patient with us and still loves us through our mistakes, wrong
sizes, forgotten promises, and panned plans.
Oh, and can you guess, I love being a Grandma!!!
Natalie Grace is eleven years old today and wise for her age, but still a child. She looks so grown up when allowed to wear a little blush and maybe some mascara for special events like the Christmas Eve service at church, but she is still a sweet, innocent child who is always questioning, listening, and learning.
One of her Christmas gifts was a gift certificate for Rock Wall Climbing....something I have never been interested in, but suggested we do it together on my next visit because of her love for it...because I want to get a place in and stay in her world....because her enthusiasm for new adventures entices me to think that I can do it too!
They had planned to go sledding at Paradise on Mt. Ranier today for her birthday. But the snow didn't come. No problem, the new plan is snowshoeing and I can't wait for the pictures. Years ago, before Natalie was born or even planned, Tracy and I had Thanksgiving in Washington with Ted and Robin, which included showshoeing at Paradise. What fun, and what a workout! I secretly wish I were there with them right now instead of airing out the kitchen from the potholder fire I started when I picked the wrong knob to heat water in the tea kettle. (But Jim is working on a Hardee's biscuit recipe that smells heavenly.)
Natalie's mom made a birthday cake from scratch, she proudly tells me, and they are taking it to the lodge and will celebrate with cake when they are done snowshoeing. Can't you just get a picture of that in your mind? This brand new eleven year old was as excited about that as anything!
We bought her an early gift while we were there for Christmas. She loved my purse so we let her pick one out. She wanted a similar color and a lot of zippers like mine has. She also wanted to be able to wear it cross-body like I do in crowds and when traveling. We went through several in a couple stores until she found THE ONE. She carried it around while humoring me, she agreed we could still keep looking and keep an eye on that one. But there was no denying it. After several attempts by Jim to interest her in another...she simply said LETS JUST PAY FOR THIS ONE. Now she tells me with great pride that she takes her purse everywhere she is allowed to and wears it like I do.
I am so grateful Natalie has good parents who have set rules, who have standards of conduct for their children and use common sense to reason out the gray areas of parenting a pre-teen. I am also grateful to this sweet girl, our first grandchild, who we have been learning to grandparent from for these eleven years. She is gentle and patient with us and still loves us through our mistakes, wrong
sizes, forgotten promises, and panned plans.
Oh, and can you guess, I love being a Grandma!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)