My friend, Jan, shared this image. I knew in an instant it would be a part of today's gratitude post. Thanks, Jan!
I spent hours on my back with Matthew on my legs up in this position. Matt loved to "fly", even then. He was my first practice baby, before Ryan Leander, and long before our firstborn, Chase. The simple airplane activity was good exercise for me and pure fun for him.
Matt and I made up our own version. Sometimes, he flew like a plane. Other times, he wanted to be in a helicopter. On the helicopter days, he would turn around, use my bent legs as a seat, and my feet were pushed forward and backward to fly the chopper. Up and down. Forward and backwards. And sometimes, in my weariness, there was a crash. How we laughed!
We used our imagination. We took a known "game" and changed it up. The creativity that came from not having many toys, limited television for kids, and time led us to stretching our imaginations. Because our life was pretty simple, we were more imaginative.
I think this is true for many. Too much of even a good thing can be overwhelming.
Proverbs 17:7 spoke to my heart today. First in "The Message:"
A pretentious, showy life is an empty life; a plain and simple life is a full life. - The Message
And, now in the New Living Translation:
Some who are poor pretend to be rich; others who are rich pretend to be poor. - NLT
What is something simple you hold onto today, that this world and culture try to complicate? Hold on to it. Make time for it.
Choose the small town diner and the Route #66 way of life, exploring the nooks and crannies of this amazing place we call home. Make extra time for the simple things that count most. Savor the local ice cream shop, swimming in a lake, board games or cards with family and friends, a picnic, picking berries, a local music/ theatre performance, or watching the fireflies dance.
It is the simple things that make life full.
In this chapter of life, Matthew and I would be pretty comical attempting "airplane" or "helicopter." In fact, one or both of us would likely be injured. I wouldn't trade the memory for anything money can buy. We didn't have much, but we had it all.
Today, I am grateful for simple childhood memories.
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