Spreading love, joy, peace, faith & unity

Posts tagged ‘grandchildren’

Change is Challenging

Change is inevitable
Change is challenging
Resist or embrace?

May as well embrace
To resist change is futile
Change is inevitable

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This is my grandson, Chris. I told you I would write more about him. He has been the center of life for Bob and our family since he arrived in the USA from Switzerland last Thanksgiving. When you first met him (if you have been following my blog), this is what he looked like:

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See the change?

And when you first met that pup he has under the blanket in his lap up there, this is what TazE looked like:

HappyTazE

Well, he is so covered up in that first picture up there, you can’t really see the gray in his face and the change in his body, can you? But, trust me… now at age 8 1/2, he has changed from that frisky guy you see there. Here’s a current one that shows you what I’m talking about:

TazE in bed

Yes, change is inevitable! And it can be scary. And it can be very exciting. But it does not do any good to resist it. Much of change is healthy and invigorating. It’ll happen whether you bid it or not. May as well plan for it!

When our grandson came last year, he knew he was in for a year of changes. He had the courage to fly into a new life here – with new opportunities – different in countless ways from his life in Sierre, Switzerland.

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Today we are driving in Montana snow (really came down yesterday… and more is expected today) from Ennis to Anaconda. It’s about a two hour drive. We will stay overnight there, hoping to find a place that will allow pets. TazE will go with us.

We are taking Chris to the Job Corps in Anaconda. He will check in at 8:00 AM tomorrow morning. He has qualified (US citizen between the age of 16-24 with a clean record who is interested in training in one of 7 manual labor areas that are deemed understaffed by the Federal Government) and has been accepted into the program.

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We took a tour there in December and we were wonderfully impressed with the site, the program, the facilities, the instructors, the equipment, the ambience, and the students. About 200 young people are there. More than 75% of them are from out-of-state. Chris will be the first who was born and raised in another country. (Our daughter is his mom… and as such, Chris has dual USA-Swiss citizenship).

There are 4 dorms, 3 for men and 1 for women (that’s the ratio of the students). Not surprising since the trades they are learning include:

  • Heavy equipment Operating
  • Heavy equipment Mechanics
  • Welding
  • Painting (buildings inside and out – not oils, acrylics, watercolor, etc.)
  • Carpentry
  • Culinary Arts
  • Brick-laying

Chris will have a month to explore the various options and then he will select the one he wishes to concentrate on. Each student is self-paced. The training could take as little as three months and as much as a year, depending on prior experience, work ethic, skill, etc.

Stay tuned. I am sure our grandson is in for changes he cannot even imagine at this time.

We are excited for him.

Aren’t you glad to know our Federal Government is supporting this kind of internship/apprenticeship program for young people?

 

Category:

Animals, children, Family, Haiku, learning, life, Life's Challenges, Love, Montana, pets, work

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Sunrise Beginnings; Sunset Endings

Just as sun rises,
Each day is new beginnings.
Rise to occasions.

sunrise

Just as the sun sets
Extraordinarily,
Ends bring beginnings.

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Allow the endings
In order to make room for
The new beginnings.

 

Our daughter’s youngest, our 23-year-old grandson, Chris, arrived from Switzerland to stay for awhile with our son in California – and to stay for a month with us here in Montana. Life here is very different for him. In the Montana month, he met our friends, went to church and shopping with us, helped us around the house a lot (like decorating for Christmas and then taking down and putting away all the decorations), received his driver’s license, toured the Job Corp campus in Anaconda, MT, filled out his application, and was accepted into the program. He has USA citizenship and is between the ages of 16 and 24; he wants to learn manual skills and may move on to find a job in a field such as carpentry, welding, or heavy equipment mechanics, and he has a “clean record”, so he qualifies for the program.

He will begin this new experience next week. Chris had to allow for a lot of endings in order to make room for these new beginnings. We are excited for him. We are impressed by his courage, spirit of adventure, and willingness to step out and learn new skills. Only the Good Lord knows what the next year will hold for him, but we know he is in God’s hands, and so we will send him off with great anticipation, faith, and confidence.

Stay tuned!!
I’m sure I will write
more about Chris
as the year progresses.
Maybe his experiences
will encourage
some 16-to-24-year-old
you know and love.

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Category:

Family, God, Haiku, life, Life's Challenges, Love, Montana

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X = Xander

Day #24 in my A-Z series of “What Makes Me Happy?”

 

XANDER

 

Xander-GG playing

He lives five minutes

Away from us in Ennis

I see him seldom

My heart aches for the happiness my great-grandson, Xander, brings into my life. I want to see him regularly, to be a positive influence on his life. But, it’s not my call. I can’t force it. All I can do is pray my granddaughter will see the light, accept my invitations, and bring him here more often (every six weeks or so just doesn’t do it). Keep my heart open. Keep inviting. Keep praying.

 

Join me in that prayer, will you?

 

You can see that Xander makes me happy.

 

Bob, my hubby, said, “X-ing.” Crossing is better than stagnation, he reasoned. “Keep moving forward in life,” he advised. Yes, wise forward X-ING brings happiness.

What’s your “X” word for happiness?

Category:

children, Family, Haiku, happiness, Heartache, Love, prayer

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G = Gratitude

“The simple practice of gratitude can change our lives. Sages throughout the centuries have noted: As we count our blessings, they multiply.”

A quote from Unity.com

Gratitude is my word for Day #7 in my series of “What Makes Me Happy.”

Yes, gratitude makes me happy – but it’s not so much the thank yous from others as much as it is my own Attitude of Gratitude.

“Happiness is not having what you want, but wanting what you have.” I don’t know who first said that, but I agree. And I would add, it is all about appreciating what you have and acknowledging those gifts. Life is a gift. Thank God today for green grass, gruyere, grace and all those “G” words that make you happy.

Mine include grandkids, Guideposts devotionals, and Goff (that’s Bob Goff who wrote Love Does and founded that fantastic organization, Pure Love Does, that reaches out to help so many. Do you know him? Get his book, if you haven’t already!). Google him! (Oh, that’s another G word for which I am grateful) And guess what? As I was writing this post, i received an e-mail from Bob Goff! His new book, Love Does for Kids, was just released. TODAY! How timely, huh?

Thank you, blogging friends. I am grateful for you, too!

What are you grateful for today?

Category:

blessings, contentment, Gratitude, happiness, Love

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F = Friends

Day #6 of the A-Z series on “What Makes Me Happy”

FRIENDS

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Friends who go fishing with my hubby (Thanks, Ray & Charley, CG & BW, Gerry & Steve)

Friends who are fabulous cooks, invite us over, and serve fabulous food, wine, and conversation

Friends at TOPS who reach their goal weight and inspire me

Friends who share their birthday happiness with us

Friends who worship with us at church, share their husband to fish with mine, make me smile, give great hugs and are just plain FABULOUS

Friends who are family – what a blessing when that happens!

Friends who are grown up former students and have kept in touch through the years

Friends who bake beautiful pies and who love the Lord as I do

Friends who serve the community, support FUND-raisers, and give generously to make our world a better place

Friends who donate zucchini to the Sr. Center – and the dear friend who plans, cooks, and serves our seniors with such grace and skill

Friends who live into their 80s and 90s and set a beautiful example of vitality and grace for the rest of us

Forever friends who are FAITHFUL forever and continue to love us in spite of our FLAWS (ah, don’t you love that F word?) … and who are as lovely inside as these FLOWERS are outside!

Friends who go FOUR-WHEELING with us

Friends who never forget us and who are FAITHFUL friends to our children

Here’s another one of those… our Friend who is our #2 daughter… Yes, FAMILY is more than blood relatives.

FAMILY is FRIENDS we choose, not just those we inherit. And if we’re truly blessed,

We have family who are friends in all parts of the world

We have grandchildren who are friends and are FUN to be with, and

We have children who keep in touch with love and gratitude daily, even if they move across the sea thousands of miles from us.

My prayer is that the ones who live close enough to see us daily will come by at least once a month, and let our great-grandson grow to know us as his FRIEND, too.

Ah, my blogging friends, I hope you are truly blessed with the FUN of FAMILY and FRIENDS who make you happy, too! I love making new blogging friends!

And never FORGET (that’s a troublesome F word) the Friend who is your constant companion. If you have this kind of a FRIEND you are blessed indeed

And don’t forget the faithful furry four-legged friends, too!

What’s the F word that makes you happiest?

Category:

blessings, Family, Fishing, friendship, happiness, Living in Harmony, Love

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Persistent Prayer

Answered Prayer

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Recently
I posted about the heartbreak
of not seeing my great-grandson
as often as I would like to.
In spite of the fact that
he and his mom & dad live
less than five minutes from us,
we are fortunate if we see him
once every three or four weeks.

I have prayed often about
this situation that makes me sad.
Well, God does hear our prayers,
and his busy parents do care.
Yesterday they came by and
we were able to spend
three quality hours together.
What a joy!

Do you have a prayer that
you feel God is not hearing?
Don’t give up! Keep asking.

Remember the story in Luke 18
of the persistent widow
who kept nagging the judge
because he seemed to care nothing
for the poor and the needy?
“My rights are being violated,
Protect me!” she nagged.

Because of her persistent badgering,
the judge finally did something
to see that she would get justice.
In verses 6-8, Jesus told the people,
“Do you hear what that judge,
corrupt as he is, is saying?
So what makes you think
God won’t step in and work for justice
for those who continue
to cry out for help?”

I cried to God for more time
to spend with my great-grandson.
God knew I am dependent
on my granddaughter to bring  him here.
God heard my persistent prayer.
God didn’t mind my badgering.
God was teaching me patience.
And appreciation.

Thank you, God, for answering
my persistent prayer.

Keep asking, my friends.
God is listening.

Category:

Bible Lessons, children, Faith, Family, Gratitude, Love

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Heartbreak

 

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Photo by Nubia Navarro (nubikini) on Pexels.com

Heartbreak

 

She said she would come.

I waited all day long.

I should have known better.

It’s the same, familiar song.

 

Gee, I know I told you

I’d be at your place by noon,

But life got in the way

And night came way too soon.

 

You said you would come

After he took a nap.

I waited all afternoon –

Played Scrabble in the gap.

 

I let you know you hurt me,

I counted on seeing you three.

I waited for you all afternoon.

You could have texted me.

 

My heart is really hurting.

I have a great-grandson near.

But I rarely see him.

I wish she’d bring him here.

 

I had a “Grandma Corner”

Full of books and games and toys.

It was the perfect corner

For little girls and boys.

 

But since you rarely come here,

I gave it to a friend

Whose grandkids are here visiting.

When will this heartbreak end?

 

 

Category:

children, Family, Life's Challenges

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Multi-Tasking

 

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Multi-Tasking

Why do just one thing

When you can do two?

Is multi-tasking

Difficult for you?

Take a lesson

From my little friend:

Add some music and

Let learning blend.

Blend tasks that are hard

With something quite pleasant

And soon you’ll discover

Multi-tasking’s a present!

Photo compliments of
my buddy, Ingrid Tillion

Category:

children, learning, Life's Challenges, Love

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Mobile Uploads

Mobile Uploads
— Read on m.facebook.com/ufi/reaction/

Granddaughter, Hope, and our great-grandson, Xander. Precious!

Category:

Family, Love

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One New Tooth

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One New Tooth
Shining bright and clean
One Pug Nose
Smelling life, so keen

One Smiley Mouth
Returning lots of glee
Two Sparkly Eyes
Looking back at me

Two Pink Cheeks
Ready to be kissed
Two Darling Ears
No sounds are missed

Two Strong Shoulders
Holding tall the head
Two Flexible Elbows
Bending to be fed

Two Chubby Hands
Reaching for the moon
Ten Active Fingers
Holding bottle or spoon

One Husky Body
Smelling clean and sweet
Two Wiggly Hips
Ready to dance in the street

Two Sturdy Legs
Ready to go walking
Two Bony Knees
Bending, but not balking

Two Balanced Feet
Holding up this chunk
Ten Monstrous Toes
Like mommy’s – who’d a thunk?

One Grand Future
Impacting Mother Earth
One Perfect Great-Grandson
A million dollars worth

Thank You, Hope and Drew
Thank You for this boy
Thank You, God
He brings us so much joy!

Jan Beekman (GG)
March 7, 2018

Category:

Family, Love

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