Mission Accomplished

We spent the night on grandson Matt’s doorstep (actually his driveway).  We simply plugged Odysseus into an electric outlet in Matt’s garage and had all the comforts of home.  One of these comforts is being able to make my own coffee  without disturbing others at the sometimes ungodly hour that I awake in the mornings.

The Honda Odyssey was transferred to Matt.  Mission accomplished.  Now we must head back home.  We will return the way we came.  Springtime in the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Shenandoah Valley is absolutely stunning and worth seeing a second-time around.

We had a great time visiting Matt, Emily and Addison (our 2-year-old great granddaughter).  What a bundle of energy she is!   As great grandparents we see it as our humble task to help our grandchildren and great grandchildren understand the distant past.  Shouldn’t all children know some of the ancient childhood games?  We taught Addison how to play  “Ring Around the Rosy.”  Once, twice, three times wasn’t enough—we played Ring Around the Rosy dozens of times!  Oh, but what fun, even though we were dizzy from going round and round and struggled to get up off the floor each time we “fell down.”  I believe Addison knows her MomMom and Grandad now—she was pleased to have us stop by and sad to see us leave.  I like the arriving part—I don’t care very much for the leaving.

I’m reminded, as I ponder this little great granddaughter of mine, something Kazantzakis wrote about his own childhood. “God always came…as long as I remained a child.  He never deceived me—He always came, a child just like myself, and deposited His toys in my hands:  sun, moon, wind.  ‘They’re gifts,’ He said, ‘they’re gifts.  Play with them.  I have lots more.”  I would open my eyes, God would vanish, but His toys would remain in my hands.”  

Jesus said, “Except you become as little children you cannot see the kingdom.” What do I see when I look at great granddaughter, Addison?  What does Addison “see” when she plays Ring Around the Rosy with her great grandad?  We must keep the child in us alive enough to have God come and deposit His toys in our hands.