Distractions

Zman and my Laela

As I plopped on my couch tonight after an evening of running through the house with the lights out playing laser tag with my four peanuts and the Zman (aka- my hubby) I couldn’t help but think that this would be one of those nights they (my kiddos) will remember.   Around the holidays I often catch myself thinking of years gone by and memories from long ago.  I also quite frequently get lost in thoughts of the memories and traditions that my children are now experiencing and wonder what they will remember as years go by.  As I was lost in thought recounting times of great joy in my life I realized that there was a common theme in each and every distinct memory that stood out in my mind.  Each one of them revolved around a relationship.  The moment was special because of who it was shared with.  I do not remember many of the gifts I received on Christmas Day, but I remember everything about the people that I shared them with.  Bare with me as I take you through this journey onto a revelation that has become my passion.

The clan

I will never forget the Christmas Eve talks shared between my sisters and I as we lay all squished in bed together in the “blue room” at Nannies house.  Jennifer would always fall asleep first and Juliana and I would lay there crunching ice for hours and contemplating with every sound if that was Santa or not.  I will also never forget that every Christmas morning Dad would be fooling with the camera trying to get it ready before we were allowed to come in the room.  It seemed like hours spent waiting for him to get that video camera focused.  I’ll just say cameras have come a long way!!  I also will never forget my Nanny, who always worked the night shift at the hospital, and would come in just about the time we were checking out all our presents in her stark white nurse uniform with a big smile on her face.  Nurse apparel has also changed.  The laughs we shared standing over my Nannies floor furnace as the airflow made our nightgowns puff out were countless and that joke never seemed to tire. 

Of coarse these memories all revolve around Christmas time, but this same theme follows me throughout my entire life.  Moments I will never forget:  Car rides in my Dad’s yellow beat up beetle bug to and from ball practice.  Singing in the bathroom with my Mom and whoever else happened to be over and getting ready at the Galloway house.  Yard work with my Dad or the endless amount of laughs shared between my cousins and I as we sat on the pews of East Gadsden Church of Christ.

One of my favorite presents!

So after taking a trip down memory lane this is the conclusion I have come too.  I want to create for my four children a stockpile of memories that will help to shape and guide them throughout their life.  No amount of material possessions no matter how cool or socially “in” they may be will provide this.  No, instead it is going to come directly from the efforts of me and their father and our willingness to put the time into creating them.   When my children think back to their childhood I want them to remember bedtime talks where we are all piled up in the bed discussing the “important stuff.”  I want them to remember the countless hide-n-seek games played inside a dark house where I, not to brag, usually always win.  I want them to remember our family prayers and the people and places we have prayed for time and time again.  I want them to remember that sometimes being a good parent, correction, a lot of times being a good parent does not mean being their best friend.  I want them to remember that we made them work, yes, work, because good work helps to build strong character.  I want them to learn the value of prolonged gratification, something I fear our culture has so quickly ripped from our children’s hands.  Teaching my children to wait for the best instead of settling for the NOW is a gift that will carry them through the rest of their life.  I want my children to be able to find joy in relationships, not merchandise. 

making memories!

We are surrounded by a culture that wants to strip every relationship from our hands by the simple touch of a button and to replace it with a counterfeit.  My New Year’s Resolution is to battle like never before for the minds and hearts of my children.  To refuse to become consumed by consumption, to refuse to believe that happiness comes from THINGS, to deny myself and to deny my children of the things that I know in my heart will only corrupt their minds and steal their joy.  I want to teach them the true value of a relationship.  I pray that those lessons will be the ones that they draw from when they begin to form their own relationship with God.  Satan has an agenda and it is very simple and can be defined in one word, DISTRACTION!  He wants to distract Mom’s, Dad’s, kids, and every relationship within.  So in the year of 2013 I commit to battle against the distractions that Satan intends to throw at my family and to protect my children from a culture that wants to consume them or rather for them to consume.  I vow to cherish every moment, every conversation, every sloppy wet kiss, and to truly value every relationship in my life especially the one with my Creator.  So I leave you with a challenge.  Whatever is distracting you or whatever is distracting your children from true meaningful relationships with each other and more importantly the Almighty Creator of Heaven and Earth discard it from your life, no matter the cost.  That’s a sure fire way to make for some great memories in 2013!

Love and hugs and Happy New Year,

Jil