What’s up family!
Praying you all are well.
It’s been so long since you’ve received a newsletter. I know. But I’ve been busy and also resting. And that is okay.
I had been thinking about what I was going to write about for the month of May, and while scrolling on IG, I saw this reel that was so cool. There is a song called, “Born Wit It”, by a woman who is clearly an island gal. The lyrics go:
My great great grandmother pass it down
My great grandmother pass it down
My mother get it from my granny
And mommy give it to me
Cause we was born wit it.
Born wit it…
The music has a Caribbean vibe, and makes you want to dance! (I later learned that the song was about being born with a big butt passed down from generations…. but…we’ll move on.) The reels on IG feature people who are showing all these different things that were passed down from generation to generation. Some people show a specific seasoning or spice, others a family pot that was passed down, etc. I started to think about what was passed down to me…
And then it hit me. It wasn’t a pot, or a spice, or a dance. It was:
A chair,
A reserve corner,
Writing,
And quiet time with the Lord.
***This is a long one, so here we go…***
My granny didn’t drive, but I clearly remember my mom driving my granny to drivers training on many different occasions. She must have never passed. Because she didn’t drive, we took granny to a lot of different places. As a toddler and in my early childhood years, we would often take her to Meijer so she could get her staples. My parents remind me that each and every time, I wanted to get in the cart with granny, because I knew she’d buy me more crayons, even though I had 09284039549435982-423084789457-098 crayons. (I needed another box okay.)
We went to granny’s house every day after school, and that is where I became anything I wanted to be. If I wanted to be a scientist, granny would allow me to make a mess of her kitchen and put together different potions with water, food coloring, and glitter. If I wanted to be a surgeon, she would give me a knife (it was the 90’s and I’m fine… chill), and she would let me dissect any of the meat that was for dinner (gross… I know). Granny nurtured my creativity. She listened to me recite my poems a gazillion times, and she read my writings.
Before my mom or dad would come pick us up, at some point granny would be in her chair. Her specific chair. The chair changed over the years, but was always a recliner. Next to the chair was her “reserve”. This could consist of:
- A folding tray
- Paper and something to write with
- Glasses
- Hard candy
- Newspaper
- Magazines
- Remotes
- Bible
- Basically all the things she needed so she didn’t have to get up and could sit for a while.
Over the years, granny’s reserve had grown and changed. I watched granny do a lot of writing in my highschool and early adult years. I have some of her writings, as she loved to write out scripture, and then its meaning. She used to write in cursive and as a kid I thought it was amazing. She would write and write and write. Once she could no longer write, guess what granny took up? Coloring. Her reserve would be full of different coloring books and colored pencils. She didn’t like crayons. And when you’d visit, you’d have to look at all of the new pages she’d colored. Granny’s dementia has now made it difficult for her to write and color, but Granny had a love for words and creativity. I miss the granny that I used to know.
But as the lyrics said, “My mother get it from my granny…”, and yes my mother did. My mother excelled in writing. She couldn’t help me with any math, but could write a paper, tell me about grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, etc. My mother also has a chair… a recliner at that. She also has a “reserve”. And just like granny, my mother has her quiet time with the Lord. My mother has been a member of Bible Study Fellowship for many years, and really challenges me to spend time and build a relationship with God. Not just listen to these songs, but to really worship and cultivate a relationship.
I say all this to say that I’m grateful.
Although my granny no longer knows who I am.
I know her.
She has unknowingly taught me the most important lessons about life. She worked so hard, and she loved the Lord and she knew the word for herself. One of her favorite verses is from
Ecclesiastes 1:9, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” (NIV)
She would always recite that verse, as nothing really surprised her. Granny would often remind me that life isn’t hard. We make it hard, and that there is nothing new. Everything has been done before. So as I sit here in my chair, with my reserve, and think about these generational “hand me downs”, it is a blessing. It is a gift to think over my granny’s life and reflect on how she passed down her love of Christ and writing through my mom, and to me. It is a gift that when I’m having my quiet time, that my little girl comes and finds me, and snuggles up during my prayer time. It is a gift that when she asks me if I’m crying happy tears, that I can tell her, “Yes, because God has been so good to us.”
One day I may get a recliner in granny’s honor.
But for now, as I reflect on granny’s favorite verse, that there is nothing new…
Writing to you all, which was passed down from granny to mommy to me…
In my chair, which was passed down from granny to mommy to me…
With my reserve, which was passed down from granny to mommy to me…
Is one of the biggest blessings of my life.
Thank you granny.
Thank you mom.
Because of you, I was “born wit it”, and I’m grateful.
To all the mothers, aunties, sisters, cousins, foster mothers, adoptive mothers, all of the women who are mother figures in our lives, Happy Mothers Day to you all. Thank you for all of the things that you’ve passed down to us. I challenge us all to cultivate something that we can pass down to generations that makes an impact on the kingdom and also in cultivating a spirit of thanksgiving, as God calls us to:
“Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the father through him. (Colossians 3:16-17, NIV)”
Because without my granny, and my mommy, I wouldn’t be here writing this to you all, and wouldn’t have had the visual of having a relationship with Christ and a need to write and be creative.
Blessings to you all, and I pray your month of May brings about love, peace, and springtime blessings.
