Pumpkins, gourds, and autumn foliage colored my recent days with thoughts of past generations. And, as my calendar flips from October to November, I reminisce this morning of holidays past. Thoughts of seasons filled with cinnamon-infused cider, bowls dredged in flour, wooden spoons dripping in corn syrup, and butter-smeared glass cups conjure family memories worthy of recall. A seemingly universal state, bittersweet nostalgia peaks as it connects the past with our present.
Holidays spent with loved ones now gone have been replaced with the tangible: Mom’s recipe of sage-sprinkled cornbread dressing, a carnival glass platter, and my mother-in-law’s famous pecan pie. Holiday gatherings are centered around relationships and whether healing or piercing, the longing becomes a psychological substitute for the physical.
My intentionality is heightened on the days falling between the turkey and the ham. It’s not about giving less, doing less, that we take time to relax over pie and coffee in front of a warm fire. It’s about adding depth and meaning to this special time of the year. It’s about making good memories and adding new traditions before reaching those quintessential moments around the table or the tree. Intentionality means filling days with purposeful words and deeds and weaving them into legacy as a wife, mother, and grandmother.
Truth is, it’s more than the flip of the calendar or autumn’s colors that determines our seasons. All seasons come to us, not by chance but by God’s power, and we illustrate our faith by each encounter. A shallow life leaves details to fate and yet, when we walk our life deliberately, our legacy has God-given potential. His handiwork in seasons past reveals his consistent character, providing hope for the seasons yet to come. So I must consider the legacy I will leave. And in that legacy, am I defining my faith and making life choices reflecting those values?
What we choose to do with our gift of days matters. May God find me using my days wisely with each flip of the calendar.
So teach us to number our days, That we may present to You a heart of wisdom. – Ps. 90:12 NASB
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