Grandma's Most Prized Possession
Yesterday I went to my mom's to help her clean out her basement. Both my grandparents (her mother and father) passed away in 2015 and she had a large portion of their belongings stored in her basement. You can imagine how much "stuff" they had accumulated throughout 90+ years of life.
My mom organized everything into sections- jewelry, knick-knacks, kitchen gadgets, vases, books, etc.
We were given the opportunity to look through their possessions and take the items that held special meaning to us.
Of course there were a few odds and ends I wanted to pick up - something kitchen related as my grandmother was always cooking or baking for her family...a piece of jewelry as grandma was ALWAYS fashionably dressed and accessorized....a "rooster" knick-knack as grandma loved birds and made sure every room of her home contained some type of reference to the farmhouse animal.
As I knelt on the cool concrete and grabbed an empty box to start to pack my "symbols", I started thinking about the memories and actual experiences shared with grandma and grandpa - summer afternoons playing mini-golf at the driving range, drinking Dad's Root Beer while we watched grandpa mow the greens, shopping for back-to-school clothes with grandma at Stratford Square mall, going out to dinner for Mexican food, serving them milkshakes when they visited me at Steak n Shake while I was waitressing in college...
I was deep in thought trying to recall those "special moments" and other emblems that could represent my fond memories of such loving grandparents. Was there anything else of theirs I really wanted?
I reached into the box to pull out tissue so I could wrap my items when my hand brushed over something hard. Surprised that the box wasn't actually empty, I picked up a small trinket that was covered in a paper towel and unrolled it.
A prayer rock.
This. This item took my breath away.
The most important possession I could ever own- that I KNOW my grandma wanted me to have - FAITH.
The only thing she ever wanted for her family was to know the Lord.
I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior when I was in 8th grade. Although I have had a relationship with God since 2001, I have not always been the most vocal about religion or consistently attended church - oftentimes going through cycles of heavy prayer and worship followed by months (and in some cases - years) of non-attendance.
I will never forget the end of my grandma's funeral when a relative pulled me aside to offer her condolences; my aunt's words echoed in my head as I sat in the basement holding the token my grandma sent from Heaven - "Grandma was so proud and happy that you accepted Jesus into your life. That relationship is so important. Trust in the Lord. Hold onto your faith and don't ever lose it."
