March 4, 2007
Lady In Waiting
Isaiah 40:31

But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

As I sat on the deck of our little place in the North Carolina Smoky Mountains, I was waiting. It seems like I am always a Lady in Waiting. This time I was waiting on a little red Datsun to climb up the winding mountain road to our cottage. I knew that good things and good times were coming. The horn began blowing to alert us they were on their way up. The door flew open and out burst our first grandson, Zachary. He was about five years old and full of fun and laughter. Running for all he was worth, with out-stretched arms and me yelling, “Here comes our boy!” The hugs and kisses are worth everything to these grandparents. We knew he would be with us for a whole week. We always planned for his visit. Every day a little surprise awaited him in a basket. He chose one every morning, just for fun. I had the most fun collecting seven days of treats for him. Is sure is a lot easier now that we have the ever famous “$1.00 Store”. Our day began with a pick from the basket, a little Bible story, and a quick prayer. Then he was off with “Popup”. Who knew what they had planned to get into for the day. Zachary’s nickname was Fire Marshall when he stayed with us. Off the two would go to get the “burn permit” for the daily activity of clearing the land and the famous bonfire. Of course “Popup” let him do things that put me over the edge. I was yelling adown from the cottage, “Be careful, that fire looks too big.” “It’s okay Grandma, we have it all under control,” Zachary assured me. That didn’t convince me, as I knew “Popup” was back in his childhood with Zach and they sure didn’t want Grandma to mess with them. What fun we had together around those bonfires at night. My parents would join us, as their cottage was next door. Oh the swapping of tales brought much laughter to all of us. Money can’t but those kinds of memories. I’ve found that life is made up of moments that capture memories. Now we are preparing to go to Zach’s graduation from high school; then he’s off to college at North Carolina State. How does the happen overnight? How can he be this old? The ties we formed at age five are now just as strong. We always look forward to hugs from our “Fire Marshal”. Over the years, fires seem to come and they clear away a lot of underbrush. The “stuff” that grows while life is taking place. It seems like you wake up one morning and there is stuff growing around your feet. We plow through it but it seems like it takes forever. Thank goodness I still hear Zachary’s little voice yelling up, “It’s okay Grandma, we have everything under control.” For a long time I hade a note on my mirror that read, “Dear Sharon, I have everything under control, Love Jesus.” Boy do I believe that. It took awhile, but God was speaking through our five year old grandson 13 years ago. I wish I could tack that note on everyone’s mirror so that would be the first thing we would all read in the morning. A “lady in waiting” this gal will always be, as it always proves to be a huge blessing.

Sharon Longbottom
Posted with permission of Bob Longbottom and in memory of our very dear friend.