It is said that you can tell your priorities by your checkbook and your calendar. This is so true where we put our time and treasures really shows what is important to us. So I heard a perfect visual for giving this morning in my Bible study. The white spaces in our calendar where our schedule is not packed, just may be opportunities to bless someone else with a few moments of our time. Reaching out to let someone know we are thinking of them is key. Whether we choose to make cookies to share with a doorbell ditch or just pick up the phone and call or text to check in.
These past couple weeks have put me on the receiving end of others putting my family in their white space. The sympathy cards, meals, phone calls and Facebook hugs have been just what we needed in this grief of losing my sister to Covid so unexpectedly. The truth is yesterday I spent my white space in pajamas, in bed, crocheting and wiping away tears. Ron spent his day out trekking after the stone calendars he loves to study getting his boots dirty. Each of us needs to block out time for our own emotional health and fill it with whatever is a salve to our soul. I received hugs throughout the day from others letting me know I am not alone in this unexpected dark time. Those reaching out mean the world. It is proof that we are not alone but surrounded by the love and support of others.
Today I am back to accomplishing my to do list which includes unloading the treasures I brought back from my Mom’s house to somehow fit into my home. My hope is to share some of her countless Christmas decorations with others who loved her. That will not only bless them but will bless me by not overwhelming me with too much stuff. Even stuff that has sweet memories is better shared than gripping it too tight. So I am going to do my best to cling to the memories of my Mom and my Sister, Teri. Knowing that someday we will all be together and have endless white space to be together and share our hearts for one another comforts me.
Every time I drop off candy, socks, or little notes to others in my community it is really a selfish act. I get way more pleasure from it than I give. That is what makes being generous so fabulous. The giver and the receiver light up at the act of sharing.
With all we have sharing a bit is such a joy. Even the Christmas stuff from Mom’s that didn’t make it back here but was dropped off at Goodwill makes me smile thinking of those who will fall in love with a sparkly item and place it in the perfect spot for their families joy. What a gift it is to give. Mom’s love of Christmas lives on through her heart and treasures that will be displayed in our families homes and the homes of so many others.
In Him,
Joyful
12-7-20
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