That Old Rocking Chair

I love rocking chairs and porch swings. These are on my front porch. I think I love them so much because they remind me of my childhood and my grandparents, Maw and Papa. I remember sitting on their front porch shelling beans with my Maw and listening to my Papa tell his stories. Some days my Papa would sit on his front porch and whittle away on a piece of cedar. He never made anything in particular that I can remember, but was content in the way his knife sliced through that piece of wood. Often, I was content in just sitting there with him and just being. Maw was always kind and patient with us. She would let us make mud pies in her old pie pans and she constantly had something cooking on the stove. Their house always smelled like home. It's funny the things we remember, isn't it? I really miss them. Now that I'm older, I wish I had sat a little longer and listened a little closer.

I often wonder what memories my children will carry with them through their lives. Will they remember I was kind? Or will they remember that I would often lose my patience with them? Will they be able to say I spoke love into their lives or will they say I never took the time to listen? I pray that they take away only the good things. When I stop to think, "What will my children say about me when they're grown?", it puts my actions in a whole new perspective. I have to continually pray for my attitude. I pray to be a good example to my children. I know I have failed miserably more times than I could count. I know that it's not the great deeds we do that people remember, but the little things. It's not what we did, but usually how we treated others that tends to be remembered. Do I smile when I meet a stranger? Yes, I do. Do I smile at my kids when they get up in the morning or when they arrive home from school? I try, but can't say with great confidence that I'm predictable about it. We may think it's not a big deal, because our kids are going to love us no matter what, which is mostly true. They will love us, but when they grow up will they long to be with us. I so hope the memories my children carry away with them will also bring them back home. Memories are a significant part of our being. They are a constant, a movie of the mind. So what will my children remember about this day? Good memories are treasures...a reminder of those we love, those that love us and our pathway home.

Life is a scrapbook, torn and old

In which our lives are told,

And when the twilight shadows fall

This is the sweetest thing of all;

To turn the pages of the years,

Remembering with happy tears

The faithful love, the perfect friend...

These things are treasured to the end.

-- Author Unknown