treasures

She opened the door slowly, the one that she had gone through probably hundreds of times in the course of her childhood. The familiar smells lingered in the air at the old farm house; the grass, the dirt road, mesquite trees and the wind blowing the warm Texas sun. At night you could stare at the sky and imagine you were there among them. If she closed her eyes she whisked herself back to her childhood visits with her Grandparents. To the times when the house was full of visiting family chatting about their travels and the latest news while the kids explored the wild outdoors that awaited them.   It was the kind of place where you felt like you had been taken to another time and place.

She blinked and realized that so many years had passed through her fingers, like sand. But unlike sand that is so small and fleeting and leaves you with an empty hand, the years that had passed had left her with treasures. Just like treasures they were hidden, and needed to be sought out. There was plenty of sadness through the years to be had as well. There were friends that had come and gone and many a dear family member that had passed, but there was gain if she chose to look for and pursue it.

Standing in the open living room that had been lovingly and creatively designed by her Grandparents, she thought about all the places they had traveled to. The pictures on the walls were like time capsules, waiting to be opened. She had heard stories of Scotland, Hawaii, Guam and adventures on ships and some from the farm. It had been a few years since her Grandpa had passed and the shadow of her Grandma was like a delicate lace, needing to be care for ever so gently.  Stories lingered in the hallway, along the walls, in the rafters and in each corner of the old house waiting to be sought out. The memories, the life of the house was there wanting to be lived over again.

She has warmed the house now, with her own family while she cares for her Grandmother. The stories have begun again and are being reborn. Like a web being tacked to the rafters and catching those who pass by. There are new memories being made and set in motion. Like a sunrise and a sunset at the same time. There are so many memories to be shared and made in the old farm house. She had reflected in a moment what had taken a lifetime to learn, how much family truly needs one another. That God had created us for each other. She needed to carry the heritage of the family like a treasure and share it with her own.

It is right to let the sun set but it is even more important to rise with the dawn of a new day and to take in all the treasures that are awaiting you that day.  To find the treasures in life is a gift that we should all seek out through our heritage, through our family. And if this is something that seems out of your reach,, then make a choice to spin your own memories, with your own family. Heritage, memories, families are treasures. If life is sifting through your fingers, make sure you don’t let the treasures slip away.