May 8, 2009

• Dancing with Change

  Years ago I wanted to know the meaning of each of our names. Years ago I made something simple that I have enjoyed for years. These name cards are old and age stained, yet they remain beautiful to me. I took them out of their special made frame in order to let go of what had been so that I could continue to rejoice over what is.
     
  The other day the family that had been six became a family of fifteen. Soon this family of fifteen will become a family of sixteen when Rob and Ashley welcome their third child into this world in September. Who knows what our number will be someday!
  
  Already this grouping is out of date. Jade Marie moved from Christina’s womb to her arms on May 4, 2009. Isn’t life is an amazing series of never to be repeated events?

  After replacing the name cards with the photos I wondered what to do with the cards. It just didn’t seem right to toss them away but to simply keep them wasn’t going to work for me either. Instead I decided to use them for a project that I’ve wanted to do for years.
  
  Each one is being placed on Moleskin notebooks that I have for each son. Often I have random thoughts, prayers, and ideas that I want to pass onto my sons and their families. More often than not these thoughts never leave the confines of my brain. These books are my way of seeking to share a part of me with those who have come after me.

  Since becoming a grandmother I have often thought of my own grandmothers who have long since passed on. Somehow this stage of my life has granted insight to their hearts and lives. It has allowed me to see myself as they might have seen me. I have realized what a gift they gave me so many years ago…the gift that only now can I begin to understand: unconditional love & acceptance. This has profoundly shaped me as a growing grandmother and as a woman.

  
  These Jersey shore ocean treasures remind me of the passage of time and life and the importance of leaving behind a token of our existence here on earth. Change is a part of this world…I choose to embrace it, celebrate it, remember it and record it…and to dance with it.

  
  

  Lee Ann Womack’s I Hope You Dance

   

  I hope you never lose your sense of wonder
  You get your fill to eat
  But always keep that hunger
  May you never take one single breath for granted
  God forbid love ever leave you empty handed
  I hope you still feel small
  When you stand by the ocean
  Whenever one door closes, I hope one more opens
  Promise me you’ll give faith a fighting chance

  And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
  I hope you dance
  I hope you dance

  I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance
  Never settle for the path of least resistance
  Living might mean taking chances
  But they’re worth taking
  Lovin’ might be a mistake
  But it’s worth making
  Don’t let some hell bent heart
  Leave you bitter
  When you come close to selling out
  Reconsider
  Give the heavens above
  More than just a passing glance

  And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
  I hope you dance
  (Time is a real and constant motion always)
  I hope you dance
  (Rolling us along)
  I hope you dance
  (Tell me who)
  I hope you dance
  (Wants to look back on their youth and wonder)
  (Where those years have gone)

  I hope you still feel small
  When you stand by the ocean
  Whenever one door closes, I hope one more opens
  Promise me you’ll give faith a fighting chance

  And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
  Dance
  
  

  • 12:44 pm
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