Grandchildren and Boxes
Sunsets
I spent most of my childhood on the Gulf Coast of Florida. Part of the memories of my childhood was spent watching sunsets. My family owned a boat and often we would spend the evenings eating our supper on the boat, taking a swim, watching the dolphins and then waiting for the sunset before anchoring for the night or going back to the dock. Sunsets are something that seem to be always there.... And so we take them for granted. I wonder why most of us don't take the time to fix our eyes on the sky when the day is coming to a close. For me this time of day is often a time of quiet, reflection and a sense of God's presence. For some reason I always felt as though those beautiful colors were painted on the sky just for me to behold. I thought of how amazing that since creation there have no sunsets exactly the same. The sky filled with color held promise for tomorrow. Yes, there would be another sunrise in the morning... And another sunset. He doesn't change. Everyday He is there and He is faithful. As a child I wondered if others saw the colors as I saw them. The sky seem to speak of hope for the future. Although I am now in my sunset years I look at a sunset and remember, I remember the faithfulness of God in the days that are past. The sunset represents joy, hope and assurance of His presence.My scrapbook.
Today I am sorting pictures to put into a scrapbook project. I will not complete the job today as I have mountains, piles and boxes of pictures. On the table before me lays a big mess... not only of pictures but tickets, programs, newspaper clippings, and achievement awards that I thought were long forgotten. The pictures contain images of my grandparents, my parents, myself, extended family, friends, children and grandchildren. There are also pictures of places, events, and items such as cars, flowers and even butterflies. Where do I begin... and how did it accumulate into such a mess of memories that lay before me? Memory... it is defined as the power or process of reproducing or recalling what has been learned. As I look these pictures they do invoke a memory of lessons learned, and some unfortunately not learned. These images also bring me to a another time and another place in the journey of not only my own life but the lives of those who went before me. As I gaze at some very old and some new pictures they bring thoughts of joy, questions of why, where, and even sometimes sadness. It is amazing to me how the Lord uses our recall of memory while looking at pictures. Even fragrances, music, and feeling of emotion freshen our thoughts of how He has blessed us over the generations. I think as I begin this scrapbooking hobby I need to have a goal ..a purpose.. Should it be to pass on to those who come behind me the importance of looking back, learning from the past and remembering the blessings that God has showered on us? The promise of tomorrows blessings can certainly be seen as we remember past blessings. The places... old houses, barns, new and old buildings, fields of flowers, snow, autumn brilliance, and seashores. The events.. Holidays, birthday celebrations, family vacations, picnics, sporting events, graduations, births, and work projects. The faces... silly, sad, reflective, baby faces, old wrinkled faces, and faces displaying surprise and joy! All these pictures tell a story. One I looked at this morning tells a story of three brothers leaving for WW II, another recalls the birth of a baby, a school project, and another tells a story of a day which is cherished deep in my heart because it reminds me of a walk in the woods with my precious husband. Sometimes I seem to have memories that are tucked deep into my heart and forgotten yet when I look upon these pictures I can feel the joy and contentment of that day. I hope that someday as future generations see these scrapbooks they will see spiritual markers in the lives of their ancestors. I know these scrap books will not be works of art as I will not have the time or the creative ablility to create that kind of memento but I do hope that it will serve as an encouragement for them to look, see and taste the plans that God has for them. Words, thoughts, feelings and actions of each of us will effect the lives of those around us, of those who come after us. My prayer is that our family story will be one that displays obedience and that glorifies our heavenly Father. Joel 1:3 Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation.posted by His Lamb @ 5:55 AM 0 comments
1 comment:
I foung you note in my CCC blog. I am writing a book on the CCC camps in the Adirondacks and I'd love to see your Paul Smith Barnum Pond pictures. I just wrote a draft of the Paul Smiths CCC camp. What year was you father in the camp, I also have a 1937 NY CCC Yearbook. Perhaps your dad is in it. I live in CT. My name and address is at www.adirondackstories.com
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