A Jewelry Box, a Button Jar, and a Writing Change
A Jewelry Box
She plops down on the carpet, awaiting me to break out the promised treasures in my bedroom. I sit down on the floor beside her.
I open up the bottom drawer of my jewelry box I had placed beside us.
One by one, my 3-year-old granddaughter pulls a bracelet out of the jewelry box. She oohs and ahs. This one has a heart! That one is pink! This one is my favorite!
She can’t believe it.
A Button Jar
I remember back to when I was a young girl. It wasn’t a jewelry box that I looked through.
It was my mother’s jar of buttons.
I’m not sure how my mother had collected so many buttons. Some were huge; some were tiny. Every color was represented. The large, clear, mason jar even contained odd-shaped buttons different than the traditional circle.
I’m not sure why the buttons fascinated me so. I would play with them for hours.
But now that I’m grown, I don’t have my own button jar.
I don’t need one. While some of my clothes do still have buttons, others have snaps, velcro, elastic, or zippers.
Times have changed. Options have multiplied.
A Writing Change
For ten years I have been a contributing writer at Do Not Depart, a blog dedicated to equipping women (and men) in their walk with Christ. I’ve enjoyed the camaraderie with other writers and with our readers. We’ve had great dialogues in the comments and in emails.
But times have changed and my options have multiplied.
As of last month, I finished writing for Do Not Depart so I could turn my attention to other areas in this season of life.
Both my daughters now have children and I love being available to them. I’m also returning to pre-covid volunteer opportunities. And I want to be available for new options the Lord may offer.
Sometimes saying no to an old assignment means we’re available to say yes to a new one.
So I say thank you to my fellow contributors at Do Not Depart and to our readers who were so gracious to entertain my writings there for 10 years.
It was a blessing to lead the scripture memory groups there as well. It’s uncertain how the memory challenges will evolve in the coming months, but I look forward to seeing what comes next. (In the meantime, you can download multiple free memory resources here at Do Not Depart for 21 different chapters of the Bible.)
I Will Remember
My granddaughter continues playing with my bracelets for awhile longer, choosing which ones fit her and which ones she insists I wear. We jingle and jangle and enjoy the moment.
The morning together is priceless. I wonder, when she becomes an adult, if she’ll remember these mornings looking at treasures with Granna.
I know I will.
How has your life changed since the beginning of the pandemic until now? Have you had to release older things to grab on to newer things, too?
Share your thoughts in the comments.
You’re so right, Lisa, each season requires us to make fresh choices … maybe ‘invites’ is a more apt description.
Letting go of the former seasons has always been a huge challenge for me. I hate farewells.
The Lord whispers, ‘See I am doing a new thing …’
How I loved this video of your granddaughter playing with the jewelry, Lisa! She is truly precious, and now with three grands, I think you’ve made the right choice to be more available to help care for them. There’s nothing more rewarding, guaranteed!
Oh such a precious video, Dear Lisa. And what precious memories you are building! We are preparing to move into our daughter and son-in-law’s home this month, so there will be many transitions for us as well. I’m praying for our time spent with our grandson there, and the new life moments ahead. Thanks for these good reminders to let go of the old when God moves us on to new.
I thank God for different seasons and His leading in them all.
Your little granddaughter is adorable, and I ASSURE you that she WILL remember this. She will! And even now you are making an impact on her life, Lisa, because you are demonstrating in a tangible way to her that your real treasures are not spilled out onto the floor for her to behold or with which to bedeck her arms, but rather, that *she* herself is your treasure and that time that you spend with her. And, Lisa, by your reprioritizing your schedule and commitments, you are proving this in a way of which she is not now yet aware. But God is. And Jesus had a special place in his heart for little children whom He bid to come to Him.
And what I found fascinating about that darling video of a darling little girl, is that she, herself, prioritized. She abandoned a bevy of bracelets for her very favorite, for just one special one. So in her innocence, she was applying the principle that her granna was explaining to her readers. Less really is more. But more than that, it is choosing the right things to let go (bittersweet as that is, especially when the Lord had originally called you to that writing opp in the first place), and also choosing the right things on which to focus and for which to make room. It’s all in the choice–God’s for us–and the willingness to say yes to it (and, as appropriate, a humble no thank you).
Love
Lynn
Oh, and I? You asked your readers. So, yes, I have had to do that, too, and it is NOT easy, especially when God bids me let go something that I love, or some ministry that was fruit-bearing. Sometimes it makes utterly, earthly no sense to me, and it is a costly relinquishment. But in the end, if I am to truly follow Jesus, it is far more costly to disobey.
What a sweet time with your granddaughter! My favorite memory of my grandmother is spending the night and reading in bed. She was widowed and had two twin beds in her room, and we’d snuggle in to our respective beds and read before turning out the lights.
I’ll miss you at Do Not Depart. You were the one that alerted me to that site with your writing. But I understand the need to move on, to be available for where God is leading.
Two times in our lives, we felt led to lay aside some things we were involved in before we knew a change in my husband’s job and a move was coming. A missionary friend of mine calls that God stirring the nest. 🙂
I have not had to make any changes since the pandemic, but I am contemplating and praying about how to make time to do some things I believe God has placed on my heart. We’ll see how it goes.
Trusting for grace to do the same–well placed noes to make room for the all important yeses.
It really helps me to think of life as coming in seasons—a time for everything as Solomon said. Blessings in your new one!
Lisa,
Good for you in recognizing your limits and establishing your priorities accordingly. And yes! Your granddaughter will remember the time spent with you rummaging through your jewelry box. I still have fond memories of doing the exact same thing with my aunt. It’s the simple moments that really matter.
Blessings,
Bev xx
Those moments are priceless, remembered by both Gramma and grandchild. I know my two do – with great fondness!
I love this! She will remember and it will weave into her story-telling in ways and insights that will deepen the thread of this story moment! Every season calls for change whether we want it or not. After Christmas, one son moved into our neighborhood with two of our grandsons – and that has changed our afternoons – and often, our mornings – and what sweetness it is! I wonder how it will be remembered in their stories – with their insights.
Lisa, my granddaughter loves looking through a cute red box with a bow of my bracelets. I gave her one with beads recently that says,”Amen.” Because she loves the song, “The Blessing” and calls it “Amen.”
And I also have so many buttons I’ve collected, some in a small sewing kit, others in a jar on my bedroom dresser. They are all extra’s that came with clothing.
Agree with this statement and a lesson I need to learn: “Sometimes saying no to an old assignment means we’re available to say yes to a new one.”
What a beautiful blog post, Lisa! I loved this little glimpse into the precious moments with your Granddaughter. Thank you for sharing and for being a part of the Hearth and Soul Link Party Community. I’m featuring this post at the party this week. Take care, and I hope your week is full of blessings!