Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Addition & Introduction

Marriage adds an abundance of blessings to life. Some specific Marriage Acquisitions may include:

a husband




a cute little house



kisses




a cook




muscles



a mother-in-law


The above mentioned acquisition is a truly dear mother-in-law. The addition of her to my life has been quiet the blessing. (You thought I was going somwhere else with this whole "addition thing" didn't you! -And for the record, the answer is "no.") My mother-in-law is gifted with mercy, a creative ingenius and has recently discovered her talent with the pen. Her last piece was a charming description of her son, my husband. After reading it, I could think of no better way to introduce my Jamie (Jim, as you all may know him).
"Some children are so rough and tumble that you can’t help but be concerned about their well-being. Jamie wasn’t like that though; he was a different kind of child. Indeed, there was an endearing gentleness about Jamie. How precious for a mother to witness such a sweet nature in her son. He had a beautiful rosy complexion, soft red hair, dark gray eyes and the most wonderful smile you’ve ever seen. Though just a bit on the small side, he had the abundant energy of any typical toddler but was never rowdy or difficult. Yet, first-born sons have expectations to fill and examples to set. Would Jamie’s tender heart be equal to the task? How well would he cope with the challenges of life?

"On his first birthday, the house was filled with family and friends. Jamie seemed a little bewildered but still seemed to enjoy all the activity. Everything went as planned until it was time for the cake. Not quite sure what to do with the small cake on his high chair tray, he eventually did what we all hoped he would. He made a big mess of himself and ate a little bit of the cake. Thankfully, he waited until after we got a few pictures before he did the unexpected- he brought it all back up! Too much excitement had produced a nervous stomach. It seemed that my son didn’t handle stress very well!

"Several months later, Jamie had a new experience at the home of some friends. We adults were looking at some slides, but Jamie was discovering his shadow. We enjoyed the slide show, but Jamie didn’t approve of his shadow at all. Because of the intensity of the projector lamp and the small size of the room, the shadow did seem to do strange things. As his efforts to move away from it failed, he was filled with terrror. Hoping to convince him a shadow was a fun thing, we all manipulated our own shadows, but there was no calming him. Our docile little Jamie wanted none of it, and our evening out abruptly ended.

"He didn’t care for rough-housing, either. One evening when he was about three, his daddy got on the floor to wrestle with him. Jamie wasn’t interested and after unsuccessfully trying to escape , he ordered, “Daddy, quit horsing me around!”

"As he got older, like most proud parents I looked for new milestones, but found that Jamie had to be prodded to attempt any new activity. It took some coaxing to get him to climb on his jungle gym, and when someone picked him up and set him in a tree one day, you could see the panic in his eyes. Later, he pleaded with us to leave the training wheels on his bike. It seemed there was not an adventurous bone in his body. He was going to take the road less traveled,at least by little boys. He was going to take the safe road.

"With his gentle nature, his diminutive size, and his cherubic looks, it was inevitable that Jamie’s fearfulness would make him the target of some neighborhood bully. That did happen, and on one occasion I literally had to rescue him from the hands of a 180 lb, 5 foot 10 inch tall 14 year old! I still wonder what might have happened if Jamie’s little brother had not run home to get me.

"No matter how hard he tried to avoid it, Jamie’s little-boy life was an adventure. Challenges and trials come into the lives of even little boys, but with wise and loving guidance such experiences will help to build character and confidance. The boy who was once afraid of his shadow is now an adult with numerous adventures under his belt, including two years on his high school wrestling team. He has experienced and revelled in mountain climbing, bungee jumping, spelunking, white-water rafting and wilderness trips. He has traveled to three continents, and will soon be moving to a foreign country to serve as a missionary.

"His hair is not quite as bright as it once was, and his complexion has lost that rosy glow, but the child that he was has made him the man he is today. The fear that once controlled him has become determination; his sensitive nature that once restrained him has allowed him to respond to God’s call on his life. What better example could he be? And all those expectations? Abundantly satisfied!"
To see more of my mom-in-law's writing, go to: www.faithwriters.com and search for "Debbie Engle."

No comments:

© 2009 'Two-column photo blog' by HUGE photo blog

Back to TOP