My memory bank comes alive this time of year. Memories of grandma and grandpa MacManus warm
my heart on these cold days. Christmas
was always special to my family and most importantly it was about
relationships. Most of the gifts have
long sense been discarded, outdated
stuff, replaced by more stuff. It is not
the stuff I miss, it is the laughter around a Christmas dinner, it is the time spent by a warm fireplace
burning real wood. I wish I could hunt a
Christmas tree with grandma Mac one more time.
I wish I could go back to that old gray farm house one more time and sit
by the fire with grandpa. I would ask
him questions that only he could answer.
I would tell him I love him and appreciate all the miles he walked
behind a mule plowing and planting so we could eat. I would say thanks for all the times he cut
my hair for free and then paid me for helping him pick cotton. Memories of mom and dad and all the years we
gathered at their house and celebrated our Lord’s birth always come calling
this time of year. I appreciate the
gifts they give from a loving heart but more than ever I appreciate the
sacrifices they made to give me a better life.
When the storm blew our house down,
dad and mom built a new one with a hammer , hand saw and a few other
hand tools. He had no power tools. It was a four room house, small and not much to look at but I wish I
could spend just one more night there and wake up to a breakfast cooked by the
loving hands of my mother. Well this
could go on and on but I have said enough for now. My prayer is that this Christmas all of us
will make some good memories for our families,
memories worth reviewing for a lifetime, memories not of stuff but of
relationships and above all the memory of the greatest Gift, JESUS.
jfs
