Is your Christmas an adventure?

Expectations logged in our minds from Christmasses past tend to be the paradigm from which we approach Christmas. It can be unsettling when Christmas doesn't go quite the way one expects and one may think one is having the worst Christmas. If one decides to just expect the unexpected, well then Christmas becomes an adventure, and so ours did. We knew J2 would not be flying home. We hoped the rest of us would spend Christmas Eve and day together. After an interesting time locating the meat thermometer, which happened to have travelled 11 kilometers to J4's absent friends house, J3 and J4 went to work. They wound up having to work until gone 8:00pm, after which more adventures began. While the turkey cooled its heels, they went to find J1. J1 wound up being so sick that j3 and j4 delivered food to him and let him sleep. Four us then ate the turkey together followed by j3 and j4 delivering more food, this time to their workplace, the infamous Dominos. After their food run they had a dog run to care for a friends dogs who had suddenly been returned to their home. Finally the four of us that were home opened gifts late at night, tried to watch a movie, all fell asleep...and well....all the Christmas baking is still in the fridge! Today at least four of us head for our grandparents and wonder what adventures will await us for this day.

Grandparent void

This past weekend we did something we have long been tardy in doing....we visited a family who have claimed us as grandparents to their children. Thankfully this little family also has found grandparents who live close by to adopt for their kids. This visit and other families I have connected with over the past month brought to my mind the sad fact that there are untold numbers of children who have no grandparents. They may be separated by distance or death. There are children and their parents who long for the participation of an older couple in their family lives. My own family was blessed by adopting an older lady from our church as 'grandma' when grandparents were far away. Age does not diminish the significance or responsibility of one to interact with the community.