Anyone who knows me knows that I'm horrible at keeping in touch. I don't make phone calls, I rarely return emails, and I never write letters. If you want to know how I'm doing, read my blog. If you want me to know how you're doing, visit me or write your own blog.
Pathetic, I know.
This works pretty well for members of my generation. I've reconnected with several lost friends through blogs and keep in touch in a way I never would otherwise.
But go back a couple generations, and there are some really crucial people there that matter to me that don't really do much with a computer, let alone read blogs. When my mom's parents died, this hit home to me. I regretted quite a bit my failure to pick up the phone more often and visit with these wonderful people. I had a small consolation that by rare chance I had spoken on the phone with my grandma shortly before her passing. But I wish I would have talked to them more. I wish I would have shown them more how much I loved them and how much they mattered to me. And I wish I would have asked them more questions and known them even better.
I'm grateful for the knowledge that I will have the opportunity to make up for that some day in the next life.
However, I still have a living set of grandparents and I'm making the exact same mistake with them. A few weeks ago, my grandpa had a nasty fall and it really freaked me out. He's had a great recovery, all things considered, but it still got me thinking. I really don't know how much time I have left with them and I'm pretty much wasting it. So, I decided to begin writing them letters. I'm shooting for one a week, but I know there will be a week here and there that gets away from me. Still, something is better than nothing. And so, this morning, I came down to the computer and composed the first half of a letter. And it was a Joyful Moment to me. To be making an effort at something that's really important. And also in anticipation of their joy when they receive the letter. And a bit of a relief to finally do it instead of continuing to excel at procrastination.
Wishing you all Joyful Moments in a carpe diem sort of way!
3 comments:
I do this for my grandma each week, and it truly is a joy and I think it helps her to keep going. Way to GO!
by the way..that was from Me, Melanie...not Ryan...I didn't realize I was on his email.
This is an excellent example of how a small and simple thing will have big results - They will be so grateful!
We had a joyful dinner with Afton, Stephen, Stephanie, Karen, & Jeff in our home, followed by a couple of rounds of Word on the Street. My HH was a tremendous help which made me even more joyful.
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