I am finally posting a “blog.” Though I have been blogging in my mind since Christmas, between clearing out all the decorations, cleaning the house, a wonderful engagement announcement on New Year’s Eve from my youngest son Stuart and Ashley Kidd, Bob having pneumonia, and today cleaning out more storage from 36 years of marriage and 4 children… well… I am finally coming up for air. And I think I could list another dozen things, but that would only drag us all down!
Early this morning Bob and I headed into Fairhope to walk around the “town blocks.” We went into a couple of shops and ran into an old friend (she had just bought a Lullaby Hymns from Places Remembered, a local shop. After our sweet visit, we headed over to the quaint little shop where we were greeted with the oh-so-familiar melodies of the Lullaby Hymns playing. How rewarding and satisfying that was! It was fun to show Bob the CDs so beautifully displayed in their baby section. We held hands as we finished our walk and were so happy and blessed to be out in the beautiful weather (though it was really chilly… warm jackets, a must!)
BUT, later today I experienced more “letting go.” As Bob drove away with his truck loaded down with weary old Christmas decorations, our old broken Jenny Linn highchair (we used this with all 4 children), old books, the first Miss PattyCake chairs in colorful bright plastic (we used them in the first concerts), worn linens, and odd n’ end dishes and what-nots… I had mixed emotions. Bob was happy I chose Goodwill and not E-bay or a garage sale. I was being sentimental and struggling letting go of the stuff… stuff we didn’t use anymore, stuff none of the children wanted, stuff that required storage space and upkeep (time and money and clutter)… but as he drove away, I felt myself breathe deeply and say, “This is good, Nancy.”
I know I will find the “JOY” in less is more. I hope I make room for the “NEW” of today. We don’t need more things. We need more of God living in us, through us, around us and before us. His Word says, “He will perfect that which concerns me.” How beautiful is that. How trustworthy! How gracious and kind that HE doesn’t just take care of us, but HE perfects that which concerns us.
God is concerned about my issues with “letting go,” and HE will perfect that in me. This I know!
