Family – Page 8 – A Grain of Salt

Prepare the Way

Published November 18, 2021

Are you already starting to breathe heavily and sigh at the approach of Christmas decorations invading store aisles? Has the looming pronouncements of supply chain shortages have you worried about getting your Christmas gift shopping done without delay? Personally, my own resistance to getting sucked into the rush and overwhelm is to honor Advent. Practice a pause to honor the season of making room in my heart for Christmas without adding any more pressure to…

And the award goes to…

Published October 26, 2021

A tradition has caught on in my family. The vacation awards. Here is how the vacation awards program works. We announce that there will be an awards ceremony held on the final night of the vacation. No one knows who is giving or receiving the awards. The challenge is to keep a lookout for award-worthy recognition. The cardinal rule for the final awards is that they must be kind. This little tradition does one major…

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Does Anyone Iron Anymore?

Published October 4, 2021

In honor of my mother’s 91st birthday, a reflection on laundry. For most of my mother, Maxine’s childhood is a mystery. We could never get my mom to talk much about growing up in Quincy, Illinois. She was a depression-era baby born in 1930 and didn’t enjoy dwelling on any tale of difficulty or pain. Most of us conclude her silence meant a difficult time. However, Mom was quite ready to tell us about her…

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A Promise to Remember

Published September 27, 2021

This past summer, I received a thoughtful card and photos from Hawaii. As soon as I saw the return address, I knew the sender, but I had never met the sender. It was the return address, CECOSC, that helped me recognize the card contained a remembrance. I was part of that same group when Gary and I lived in Hawaii over twenty-five years ago. CECOSC stands for Civil Engineer Corps Officer’s Spouse Club. People I…

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Look Again

Published July 12, 2021

It was a lovely summer day. Grandkids were enjoying the pool. The two-year-old grandgirl was intensely absorbed in playing with her school bus and play figures on our screened front porch while her mother and I stood nearby engrossed in conversation. Our talk was disrupted by our little girl saying in a clear voice, “frog.” Immediately, we looked at each other and chuckled, “How cute.” We knew the baby was saying the word frog because…

What do you want?

Published July 5, 2021

I am one of 12 children. I remember when I was in high school my mom just got plain fed up with all that we were demanding of her so she made a sign. She attached her hand-made sign to a dowel and whenever we approached she raised the sign. The sign had three lines written on it: I want I need Buy me All 3 lines were crossed out. This was Mom’s declaration that…