I love the dreams of little girls. They know they can do anything and pursue all they do with the passion of innocence. This cannot be seen more clearly than in the pursuits of our precious granddaughters.
The oldest is an actress. She has an inborn talent for the dramatic, easily seen when she does not get her way. Her voice is natural, clear and lovely when she sings. She has taken part in community theater and excels in the roles she has been given. The second is a gymnast. She twists, springs and bounces effortlessly from one position to the next. Her petite body fearlessly attacks each task with breathtaking confidence. All four girls are dancers, their differences shown in their favorites, ballet, jazz, tap. The grace in little arms, strength in little legs, and leadership skills emerging in all of them are exciting to see. For one dance is the venue for overcoming years of neglect before she was adopted into our family. She is gaining poise and confidence, her body no longer a stumbling block to running and playing as other children.
"I want to be a Hollywood actress, Grandma. But I don't want to be in any movies that are violent or inappropriate." "I am going to be in the Olympics, Grandma. Will you come to see me?" "Grandma, it's time for my dance recital, will you be there?" These questions and comments are dear to my heart. I long to see each desire attained. I will be there, barring dread disease or death.
The dreams of little girls are dreams of life unbounded. They know they can accomplish the impossible. They do not know the evils of life yet. They know what perfect love and a little hard work can bring them. They know that smiles and hugs can be healing and fulfilling. Even a little one with a past as dreadful as any horror movie, can see herself blossoming into a star.
The dreams may change. Little girls will grow up to discover what they are meant to be. These little girls will have the safety, security and love of a close-knit, caring family. They will be encouraged to pursue their dreams, and if those dreams change, they will be encouraged to remember them with pleasure and reach for new heights.
I love the dreams of little girls. I am Grandma, a militant defender of those dreams. I cannot wait to see what the next recital, play or gymnastics meet will bring. "Grandma, you're going to just LOVE the ending of our dance." I already know I will!
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Saturday, September 12, 2009
No More Babies
Well, it has finally happened. With our precious Felicia's start in kindergarten this year, we have no more babies in our family. All of our beautiful granddaughters are now on their journey to adulthood. This is a bittersweet time. We look back to remember how tiny and helpless each of them was when we first met them. As we counted fingers and toes, tried to determine which parent they resembled the most, or teased back and forth with the other grandparents to determine whose granddaughter was the most beautiful, we also thought of the day when they would go to school - a day we wished would be delayed by many, many years.
It's fun to listen to my sons as they talk about how hard it is to see their little girls grow up. I remember those thoughts and feelings myself as I watched four little boys begin their journey through their school years. What they don't realize yet is that the next twelve years or so will bring many challenges and joys. Their work as fathers has really just begun. They will pray more for their daughters now than they did before because they no longer have complete control over the experiences their little ones will have.
Our oldest granddaughter, Tierney, has a very deep desire to have a puppy. Tierney is beginning fourth grade this year. She told me recently that she doesn't believe that her family will have a puppy before she leaves home. She told me, "I'll only be living at home for about ten more years, then I go to college." I'm sure she will have her puppy before she goes to college, but she's planning her life now. To her this is exciting, to me it stabbed my heart. They are all growing so fast. I want to take these years and put them in a bottle to carry with me daily. I think often of how blessed we have been to be such a part of the lives of our granddaughters.
Unless our youngest son gets married and brings us another grandbaby, there will be no more infants in our family. That tears at my heart. There is something so fragile, beautiful and perfect in infants. I look forward to seeing my granddaughters grow and fly on their own, but not as quickly as they would like. As Felicia speaks about how much she loves school, I find myself praying that all her school experience will be as wonderful as her first few days have been. I pray that the girls all make wonderful godly friends, that they are able to maintain the faith they have in God, that they never think of their family as an embarrassment and that they always know in the depths of their hearts how much they are loved and cherished by their mothers, fathers and grandparents.
I know in my heart that my granddaughters will succeed in life as beautiful Christian women. Their fathers are devoted to each of them. The relationship these girls have with their fathers, uncles and grandpas will give them the foundation and knowledge of what true love is. They will not need to have that part of their being fulfilled by someone else. They have true examples of what good men are, and that will keep them stable when faced with the many temptations they will face.
The first days of school are just the beginning of parenthood. There is a saying that parents are to provide their children roots and wings. Our girls have that. Their roots are deep in a strong, loving, close-knit family. They are gaining their wings while sheltered in the loving nest their parents have provided. Just as their fathers grew and then flew, they will do so. Some day our sons will be watching their grandchildren start school. I hope I'm alive to see that day. If I am not, however, I will be watching from heaven and thrilling at the wonderful women our granddaughters have become.
It's fun to listen to my sons as they talk about how hard it is to see their little girls grow up. I remember those thoughts and feelings myself as I watched four little boys begin their journey through their school years. What they don't realize yet is that the next twelve years or so will bring many challenges and joys. Their work as fathers has really just begun. They will pray more for their daughters now than they did before because they no longer have complete control over the experiences their little ones will have.
Our oldest granddaughter, Tierney, has a very deep desire to have a puppy. Tierney is beginning fourth grade this year. She told me recently that she doesn't believe that her family will have a puppy before she leaves home. She told me, "I'll only be living at home for about ten more years, then I go to college." I'm sure she will have her puppy before she goes to college, but she's planning her life now. To her this is exciting, to me it stabbed my heart. They are all growing so fast. I want to take these years and put them in a bottle to carry with me daily. I think often of how blessed we have been to be such a part of the lives of our granddaughters.
Unless our youngest son gets married and brings us another grandbaby, there will be no more infants in our family. That tears at my heart. There is something so fragile, beautiful and perfect in infants. I look forward to seeing my granddaughters grow and fly on their own, but not as quickly as they would like. As Felicia speaks about how much she loves school, I find myself praying that all her school experience will be as wonderful as her first few days have been. I pray that the girls all make wonderful godly friends, that they are able to maintain the faith they have in God, that they never think of their family as an embarrassment and that they always know in the depths of their hearts how much they are loved and cherished by their mothers, fathers and grandparents.
I know in my heart that my granddaughters will succeed in life as beautiful Christian women. Their fathers are devoted to each of them. The relationship these girls have with their fathers, uncles and grandpas will give them the foundation and knowledge of what true love is. They will not need to have that part of their being fulfilled by someone else. They have true examples of what good men are, and that will keep them stable when faced with the many temptations they will face.
The first days of school are just the beginning of parenthood. There is a saying that parents are to provide their children roots and wings. Our girls have that. Their roots are deep in a strong, loving, close-knit family. They are gaining their wings while sheltered in the loving nest their parents have provided. Just as their fathers grew and then flew, they will do so. Some day our sons will be watching their grandchildren start school. I hope I'm alive to see that day. If I am not, however, I will be watching from heaven and thrilling at the wonderful women our granddaughters have become.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Christmas Gifts
There was a beautiful story on the radio the other day. It seems that a baby boy was found in the manger in a nativity scene outside a church in Germany. The baby had a message attached to him that his mother was unable to care for him because her circumstances were so poor. She wished that someone would give her son the love and care she was not able to provide. She made it clear that she did not want to give her child away, but felt she had no options. She assumed the safest place to put her child was in the manger, with a prayer that someone would find him quickly.
Someone did find him and the youth minister and young people at the church took the baby under their care. They worked to provide the child with formula, diapers, and other supplies necessary to keep him fed and clothed. The rest of the church took donations for food, housing, and whatever the mother needed. They sent a letter to her when they discovered who she was and told her that her child was safe, and that they were sorry they hadn't known about her - but now that they did, she was part of them and they would walk through her difficult times with her.
This is truly a church. They didn't wonder whether a committee should be formed, whether the mother was conning them, lazy, or whether what they provided would be used for a purpose other than what they had intended. That didn't matter. What mattered to them was that a person had a need and they decided to fill that need.
It's Christmas and we hear several times throughout a day that there are those with needs and our help is needed. Those same people, with the same needs, are here all year 'round. Why is it so important that we help at Christmas? I believe that God wants us to help all year long. However, Christmas is a special time. Even with all the complaints of commercialism, there is still the small voice reminding us that we should give. We have a reminder that God has given to us. We have his Son.
Someone did find him and the youth minister and young people at the church took the baby under their care. They worked to provide the child with formula, diapers, and other supplies necessary to keep him fed and clothed. The rest of the church took donations for food, housing, and whatever the mother needed. They sent a letter to her when they discovered who she was and told her that her child was safe, and that they were sorry they hadn't known about her - but now that they did, she was part of them and they would walk through her difficult times with her.
This is truly a church. They didn't wonder whether a committee should be formed, whether the mother was conning them, lazy, or whether what they provided would be used for a purpose other than what they had intended. That didn't matter. What mattered to them was that a person had a need and they decided to fill that need.
It's Christmas and we hear several times throughout a day that there are those with needs and our help is needed. Those same people, with the same needs, are here all year 'round. Why is it so important that we help at Christmas? I believe that God wants us to help all year long. However, Christmas is a special time. Even with all the complaints of commercialism, there is still the small voice reminding us that we should give. We have a reminder that God has given to us. We have his Son.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Miracles DO Happen
When I last blogged, we were waiting to hear whether our son, Ron, his wife, Shannon and their two daughters, Tierney and Amissa, arrived safely in Ukraine on their quest to adopt a sister for Tierney and Amissa. At least that was the girls' take on the trip.
We have traveled with them on their adventure through Ron's blog, galyastale.blogspot.com. It turned out that they spent their first few days in Kiev, without access to any internet connection. It appears that most internet in Ukraine is dial-up, and when the phones are down (which occurs frequently), there is no internet. This was only discovered after two sets of frantic parents began talking together and then began contacting everyone we could think of to find out if they had heard from our son and daughter (after all - they had our granddaughters with them)!
Once we knew they were all safe, it became a journey of happiness and sadness all at the same time. We're thrilled that Galya is their daughter, but saddened that it doesn't become official until this coming Tuesday. Until that time, Galya must remain at the orphanage.
We have prayed for God to speed things up for them. With Christmas coming up, we all agreed that it would be awful for Shannon and Galyna to remain behind while Galya's visa application and paperwork progressed through the Embassy system. They contacted the Embassy and the wonderful people there are allowing paperwork to be faxed so they can begin quickly to make it possible for our family to return home. Ron and Shannon were notified just a couple of days ago,that they will (barring last-minute glitches) be returning home together this week!
Thank you, US Embassy (and especially, thank you God!). We will be together as a family soon.
This adventure has shown me that there are many answers to prayer we have every day, many of which we do not recognize. Most are chalked up to "coincidence" or "luck". Just waking up in the morning to serve God another day is the most miraculous. I have often gone to bed at night with the thought that any one of us might not wake the next morning. My own mother went home to heaven at night while she slept. It could happen to any of us.
Each night this compels me to tell my husband that I love him, even when we have disagreed over something earlier in the evening. When either of us goes somewhere, we express our love. Even when we are very tired, we still whisper that we love each other. My mother's last words to me, and mine to her, were "I love you." It is a great comfort to know that the final words we may say to someone were those of love.
This bunny trail has really taken a turn. However, I think it fits well. What better recognition of miracles than the miracle of a new family being formed and love being expressed? Isn't that what this very season is about? God loved us so much that he sent his son to a new family here on earth for the precise reason of expressing his love?
We have traveled with them on their adventure through Ron's blog, galyastale.blogspot.com. It turned out that they spent their first few days in Kiev, without access to any internet connection. It appears that most internet in Ukraine is dial-up, and when the phones are down (which occurs frequently), there is no internet. This was only discovered after two sets of frantic parents began talking together and then began contacting everyone we could think of to find out if they had heard from our son and daughter (after all - they had our granddaughters with them)!
Once we knew they were all safe, it became a journey of happiness and sadness all at the same time. We're thrilled that Galya is their daughter, but saddened that it doesn't become official until this coming Tuesday. Until that time, Galya must remain at the orphanage.
We have prayed for God to speed things up for them. With Christmas coming up, we all agreed that it would be awful for Shannon and Galyna to remain behind while Galya's visa application and paperwork progressed through the Embassy system. They contacted the Embassy and the wonderful people there are allowing paperwork to be faxed so they can begin quickly to make it possible for our family to return home. Ron and Shannon were notified just a couple of days ago,that they will (barring last-minute glitches) be returning home together this week!
Thank you, US Embassy (and especially, thank you God!). We will be together as a family soon.
This adventure has shown me that there are many answers to prayer we have every day, many of which we do not recognize. Most are chalked up to "coincidence" or "luck". Just waking up in the morning to serve God another day is the most miraculous. I have often gone to bed at night with the thought that any one of us might not wake the next morning. My own mother went home to heaven at night while she slept. It could happen to any of us.
Each night this compels me to tell my husband that I love him, even when we have disagreed over something earlier in the evening. When either of us goes somewhere, we express our love. Even when we are very tired, we still whisper that we love each other. My mother's last words to me, and mine to her, were "I love you." It is a great comfort to know that the final words we may say to someone were those of love.
This bunny trail has really taken a turn. However, I think it fits well. What better recognition of miracles than the miracle of a new family being formed and love being expressed? Isn't that what this very season is about? God loved us so much that he sent his son to a new family here on earth for the precise reason of expressing his love?
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