By harolene Posted on

I decided to write a letter to you!

Hello my friend!

I thought I would write a kind of a “personal” letter to you and let you hear my philosophy on slowing down as we get older, are you ready for it? If you’re not there yet just hang on…you will be sooner than later!
As we get older, we just realize that when we get up tomorrow all the work we didn’t do today will still be there, and since there are only so many hours in a day, we just do what we can and why rush to get it done? Someone said something to me that was not just funny, it was true, “No one is going to break into your house and do your housework, it will still be there when you get around to it.”

When my grandmother died, I had a great realization. My grandparents lived next door to us in Atlanta on a tree-lined street I think trees are wonderful! In the summer we use them for shade, in the winter we watch as ice crystals form on the bare limbs and they are beautiful, but when you think of trees first thing you think is that they have leaves, right? In the fall of the year as the leaves would begin to fall my grandmother would go out with a broom to sweep the driveway and complain, “If I had a child, I wouldn’t have to do this myself”. One day as I was walking down the street she was sweeping and said that to me, I told her why not just leave them and let them be a cover for the ground? And then I said “Mama, no matter how many times you sweep those leaves, there are going to be that many more tomorrow and so what? They are going to keep falling and you are going to keep sweeping.” I also told her that if she enjoyed sweeping the walk, she should do it and consider it exercise and not complain about her children not wanting to do it.

She died in the Spring of the year and when Fall came, sure enough all the leaves were still there, the beds still had to be made and dishes washed, all the things that were in her regular routine still needed to be done. 

My mother was a clean freak and we all had to help, I realized that we did a lot of the same thing every single day and just did not want to do it that way when I had my own household. I make sure all the dishes in the kitchen are clean or in the dishwasher when I go to bed, that the washing machine is doing its duty on the clothes and the dryer has a load, and lastly I check to make sure there is nothing unsanitary about the bathrooms. I can no longer polish all the furniture until I can see my face, or even vacuum the floor every day, I am living, I am taking care of my two-year old grandsons, listening to my older grandson play his drums, watch Super-hero action movies with him and listen to him and his sister laugh about his being on a dating site. I enjoy that my granddaughter is learning to cook and doing a very good job of it. My son’s chiropractic clinic is growing, and my daughter is busy as the lower school administrative assistant at a Christian school. 

I have a full life, I go to bed tired every night, I am happy, and I don’t mind that I don’t get everything done.

Whatever you endeavor to do, do it with all your heart but then you need to take the time to rest, to have your personal communion time with God and having done all that, 1Peter 5:7 Casting all your care on Him; for He cares for you!

To use a very old cliché´, Don’t worry, Be happy!

Your friend, h

5 Replies to “I decided to write a letter to you!”

  1. Jill Cohran says: Reply

    Thats good, sound advice, especially as, we age. I try to stay fairly active, but some days all I want to do is be a couch potato, read & watch TV. I do make the bed everyday, make sure the dishes are done, & bathrooms are clean. I no longer have the desire to change the decor every year or so. Same old is good enough for me. Lol I’m trying to simplify.

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Fredy says: Reply

    I think it’s just awesome and very wonderful that you get to keep your grandsons and who cares if you can’t see your reflection in the furniture. Family is what matters most. Make those memories with your children and other relatives.

    Liked by 1 person

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