The Birthright

The same oriental tea set that would sit unnoticed at a garage sale is priceless in my eyes. It is adopted as a precious possession because of whose it was.

My grandfather served in the Korean War and brought back this tea set imprinted with silver dragons for my grandmother.

She was priceless to me. Not just my grandmother, but someone I understood and someone who understood me. My father's mother: a soul mate born in the 1930s, a friend.

The year I became a wife, she died of a massive stroke.

So when what was hers becomes mine, it is precious. It is precious because it was hers, because it was passed down to me.

Her dining room table and chairs, her wooden hutch that holds my wedding crystal and our homeschooling books and art supplies, her odd little tomato pitcher, the framed picture of us together at my wedding (the last time I saw her in this life), and now her dragon tea set and a pair of white cups and saucers, covered with dancing red snowflakes.

These things are not her legacy. Her legacy is imprinted in me -- like blood it runs through me. Her legacy to love God and love people, to serve with His hands, and to pray for and encourage those she encountered.

I sit late at night, flipping through the pages of a worn Bible that smells like antique library books; a Bible that was hers, and before that, her mother's. I see her tiny script in the margins, TYF!, Thank you Father. I hear her voice giving thanks for the things He gives, and picture her hands receiving, even when the gift doesn't seem good.

Her things are not her legacy. They are just things. Her legacy is the rich wisdom and love with which she graced her children and grandchildren.

Without knowing Whose I am, perhaps I sit unnoticed and am passed by, without worth. Without knowing Who loves and care for me, maybe I am unlovable.

It is because of His blood I am precious. It is because of my spiritual birthright that I am a treasure. And it is because I know the Giver that I can learn to accept what is given, whether I would choose it or not.

Redemption

Redemption comes in many forms.

Things happen and they aren't fair and they hurt. Loss and illness and disease and disability and strained relationships and failed attempts.

But if you get back up and keep going and process the hard stuff the best you can; if you keep focusing on the positive, while not living in denial about the hurt, if you just keep going...

Someday you'll find redemption.

Keep your eyes open and keep looking because it will come.

Step by Step

You have big dreams or big tasks or both. Either way it can be overwhelming. It's so easy to look at all that is involved and be exhausted.

But before you give up and sleep through life, let me remind you that throughout history people have done great things...

• Indian Emperor Shah Jahan build the Taj Mahal in memory of his beloved wife who died giving birth to their 14th child
• Canadian Housewife Jennie Butchart supervised her vision of 55 impeccably landscaped acres come to life --  the Butchart Gardens
• Parisian Engineer Gustave Eiffel designed the Eiffel Tower
• Russian Novelist Leo Tolstory wrote War & Peace
• American Astronaut Neil Armstrong walked on the moon
• Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci scored seven perfect 10s in the 1976 Montreal summer Olympics

We all have big stuff to do and challenges to overcome. The same advice holds true for the baby learning to walk, the rehab patient, and everyone in between:

One Step at a Time

So begin today, with your goal in mind, and use your sticktuitiveness, your creativity, your courage, your mental fortitude and take the first step.

The way to complete the project, attain the dream, or finish the marathon is one step at a time.

Falling & Rising

It's easy to want to give up sometimes, to just stay down after you've tripped. Falling is embarrassing, scary, exhausting. Falling hurts.

But you get back up. It's easy to say and hard to do sometimes.

However this resonates for you today, know that you have the strength and courage to do it. We all fall down sometimes, but the bravest among us get back up and keep going.

Falling down isn't failing. It's not defeat and it's not the end. It's just a temporary set back.

Just get back up today. Once you're standing, you'll find the right way to keep going.

You have all the strength & courage you need for this!

Never Alone

Please know you are never alone. No matter where you find yourself today and what obstacles you are facing, there is someone out there who understands. Surround yourself with the positive people in your life, and wean yourself from those who are toxic.

There will always be people who just don't get it, and don't know how to build others up.

You are not one of those people.

Remember to reach out, even when you feel alone -- especially when you feel alone. Focus on the positive and find ways to cope with the hardships.

You are a one-of-a-kind, and no matter what challenges you are facing, there are ways through and around and over. Ways to grow, ways to be a stronger person, ways to use your creativity to better your world.

Don't give up!