Heart Gifts that Remind Us We are Loved

There are those people who always seem to know the perfect, heartfelt gift to give. Yesterday, Nina gave me a wooden sign that simply says OTHERS. She knows the story I tell of a lady I drove to medical appointments that had brown paper bag strips with the word OTHERS over her two doors. She lived in a studio apartment and had no family in the area so she turned to the HELP program I was involved with to give her rides for her terminal cancer treatment. When I asked about the OTHERS signs she explained that during her childhood her grandfather had made beautiful wood carved signs for every door in his home. This was to remind him that in all circumstances he should put OTHERS first in his life. This woman no longer had the wooden signs but fashioned her own out of grocery bags to remind herself. In her situation she had every right to throw the biggest pity party and question why she her life was ending all alone and without much money. She told me that the only volunteering she had the strength to do at this point was to make phone calls. Her truth was that by focusing outward to others she didn’t get caught up in the me attitude and give up. What wisdom. And now Nina’s gift gives me what that wise lady didn’t have; a beautiful carved OTHERS sign.

Nina also gave me a cup that says JOY~This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24. I use it to drink my coffee most mornings and be reminded to live in JOY~Jesus, Others, then Yourself.

There is something special about those who can see straight into our hearts and find the perfect gift to touch us. It is not about the money spent on a gift that is for sure. I am gifted with heart rocks and heart shaped pictures often from others who are such a gift themselves.

Leona and Matt gave us a pillow with the names of our kids, grandkids, and pets written in the shape of a heart. Ron uses it in our RV. Last Christmas they found a heart shaped wall hanging that is made up of rocks threaded onto a wire. Perfect. Natalie always writes me the most beautiful letters that speak of how she sees me. Her words help me see myself through her eyes and not dwell on the multiple ways I fail at life. Kenzie baking me a Keto cheesecake for my birthday honored my Keto lifestyle and was just delicious. Susi and Pat have made and remade the perfect quilts for us that we get to snuggle under. Oops, Susi said not to put it on the bed. She has worked hard to rework our quilt and says that she can’t do it again. I know she will if we need her to. That is why it takes turns on our bed with Pat’s quilt. See Susi it will last twice as long now and we are already old so it may just last. Ron is best at giving me just because gifts when he sees something that reminds him of me.

I would love to have that heart for finding just the right words or gifts. My thought is that each of us really has the gift even if it is not in gift giving but knowing when to listen, knowing when to stop by and be there for someone, or just picking up the phone at the right moment. We all need people in our lives that remind us how special we are and how much we are loved. My Aunt Judy sends everyone birthday cards with a stick of gum in it. She doesn’t put a pack of gum or any money just a single stick of gum. We all look forward to her cards. They are predictable and the fact that she always remembers us is so special. My mom and my sister never let a birthday pass without a phone call and the full Happy Birthday song being sung with enthusiasm. I love the connections that our thoughtfulness for each other creates. These are bonds that last a lifetime as we look around our homes at the precious gift from another’s heart whether it hangs over our door or is filled with hot coffee in the morning.

In Him,
Joyful
4-16-19