Love One Another

A Grandparents' Legacy

"I give you a new commandment: love one another. 

Just as I have loved you, 

you must also love one another." 

John 13:34

With Valentine's day just last week I wanted to go in a different direction...

    We had a Love One Another banquet at church. The Sunday before, Sister V. asked the ladies of the church to volunteer to each decorate a table. The decorations were to tell a story or go along with a short devotional on loving others.

    I immediately thought of my grandparents. They are always my "go to" example of love. My grandparents love for the Lord and each other overflowed onto everyone that came into their lives. While their love for Christ, for each other, and for their family was strong, I believe Granny and Pa's greatest legacy was their love for others.

    Granny and Pa were not religious people. They didn't always go to church regularly but they were Christians. They loved God and served Him in their own way, following His greatest commandment to love others as He loved us. Pa even won a bible one time for bringing the most people to camp meeting.

    Their love for one another was evident for all to see in the way they treated each other. I cannot remember ever hearing them be disrespectful, raise their voice, or say an unkind word to each other. I know there were times they disagreed but they never argued in front of me. They took care of each other and in their 55+ years of marriage I know of only two times they were ever apart for more than a day or two. And if you were lucky, when he thought no one was looking, or if he wanted to be ornery and get a reaction out of you, you might catch him stealing a kiss.

    They loved their family. They raised 8 children who gave them close to 30 grandchildren and somewhere around 60 great-grandchildren. Their home was a second home. Holiday dinners, birthday celebrations and no special reason at all, we would all gather up at their house. Their door was always open -- and not just to us.

    There were many more that called them Mom and Dad and Granny and Pa. They took in and loved those, that for whatever reason, needed them. Brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews, in-laws and relatives of in-laws, friends of their children and grandchildren, and neighbors. Everyone was welcome and once you were a part of the family, you were always a part of the family. Not even divorce could sever that tie. Only you could chose to no longer be a part of their family.

    They didn't have much in the way of material possessions but they were rich in love. What they did have, they shared. Granny and Pa opened their home up to many through out the years. They fed many mouths with the food they raised and grew and canned. They'd give you the clothes off their back and all the while shower you with their love.

Here are just a handful of my favorite childhood memories of my grandparents:

• One particularly cold and icy winter, I remember my Granny putting bread sacks over her and my shoes, held in place with rubber bands. We walked, slipped and slid, the 1/2 block to my great-granny's house to check on her and take her a hot meal. 
• My Pa sitting on the front porch talking to the little boy from across the street who was lonely. He was overweight, walked with a limp, and might as well have been an only child because the age difference was so great that he was the only child left at home at 7 years years old. He didn't have very many friends and most of the time was left behind because he couldn't keep up. Pa called him Jelly Belly, not to be mean, but as an endearment and because he gave all his grandchildren nicknames. Mine was Red, one cousin was Nail-head and one great-grandchild was Pain.
• The summer they took care of my great-uncle Wylie. He was sick and staying with them. He would lay in his bed and tell me stories about his hunting dogs. They were his children.
• One time during a family dinner Granny cooked a few steaks that she cut up into smaller pieces for all the "boys" (her sons) to share. Except one. She set it aside for my dad. When Mom commented on it, Granny informed her that Daddy didn't have his mother around any more to do things for him so she was going to.
• Snuggling up next to my Pa first thing in the morning. He'd tell me stories about the "old days" while Granny cooked us breakfast. He'd answer all my questions, tell me the same story I'd asked to hear a dozen times before, and sing. He'd sing me old hymns and nonsense songs I swore he made up only to discover they really were songs.
• This one isn't from my childhood but it is one of my most precious memories. My 80 year old grandma climbed up in a semi and rode 14 hours to come see my newborn twins. She got to see them for a total of 45 minutes because they were still in the NICU. She and my aunt spent the night, my uncle picked them up the next morning on his way back through, and she made the 14 hour trip home. <3

    Thank You, Lord, for giving me such a shining example of what loving others looks like. Thank You for the grandparents that loved beyond all measure. Help me to be more like them, to love others as You love them, as You love me. In Jesus' name, Amen.

~Delta