This month's Visiting Teaching message is/was "Strengthening Families through Temporal Self-Reliance." And no I haven't done my visiting teaching yet, and yes, I know tomorrow is the last day. But it will get done. I always get it done, one way or another.
I have recently been given Mrs. Bird to teach and I know she and Guy Smiley usually get home about 11:30 and hey, it's still the 30th tomorrow at 11:30 and, yes, I have done my visiting teaching with her before at 11:30 at night. Twice. Watch for more Mrs. Bird stories. I don't know about you but I'm hungry for a good Mrs. Bird story.
Okay, back to the subject, which is what can I really leave my children and grandchildren that might be precious to them?
In the visiting teaching message this paragraph jumped out at me:
"Julie B. Beck, Relief Society general president, explains that “providing for ourselves and others is evidence that we are disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ… When [my mother-in-law] passed away suddenly last year, she left evidence of her self-reliant life. She had a current temple recommend and well-used scriptures and gospel study manuals. We lovingly divided up the pots, pans, and dishes with which she had prepared thousands of meals. She left us quilts she had made from old clothing. She believed in the old adage ‘Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.’ We saw the supply of food she had grown, preserved, and stored. Particularly touching were her little account books in which she faithfully recorded her expenditures over many years. Because she lived providently, she left some money she had saved for emergencies, and she left no debts! Most importantly, she had taught and inspired many others with the skills she had acquired during her faithful life.”
This made me think, what can I leave my children and grandchildren that will be of any value to them?
Money. That's the obvious answer isn't it? Well, kids, good luck with that.
I think money is a poor legacy. Well, kind of. Certainly it would be a great blessing, and if we can leave them money we will. What I'm pondering about are things that last, maybe even into future generations.
I hope they would like to know things about me, things that delight me, things that don't. Tonight, as I sat at the table, cutting and wrapping caramels, and watching a movie (with headphones on, because the TV noise drives Phil crazy) a little rain freshened breeze came through the slider, it nudged my hair a little bit and then was gone. It's cousin came later, bringing the smell of wet garden dirt, and other smells that Kramer would delight in, but that were lost to me. I was charmed by these ten seconds gifts. These kind of things are private, never told to another person, would that be something my children would like to know?
I would love to know about the things that charmed my mother. She didn't keep any kind of journal, how I wish she did.
I may start a kitchen journal and keep it there to record tiny observations, my little private thoughts. Maybe I will write about kitchen success and include recipes.
Right now (Friday) our back door neighbor boy is playing his trumpet while marching up and down his yard. He's probably about thirteen or fourteen and it is such fun to watch him and hear his music. I wonder if he's in the Timpview band and he's practicing for the 4th of July parade. I would include that in my kitchen journal. His final song was a very bumbling rendition of "The Spirit of God." I silently sang along.
So here's my question. What are you leaving your children? I'd really like to know.
PS The movie I watched tonight was A Family Thing with James Earl Jones and Robert Duvall. It was excellent.
