Extended Family Past and Present

As I read through the list of day camps available I found my mind going back in time to my extended family, specifically my Choo-Choo Grandma and Grandpa. My brother and I called them that because they lived in a railroad town way up north and Grandpa worked for the railroad. My parents would either drive us or when we became older, P.J. and I would take the Greyhound bus to their single wide trailer.

Those two weeks were paradise for a pair of city kids. No smog, little traffic, a single wide trailer with three housecats and about twenty cats that hung around outside. The land the trailer was on was large, with a path dubbed “Mushroom Trail” because it had plenty of fresh mushrooms growing along it. I can also remember P.J. working one side and me the other to pick fresh strawberries for Grandmaw. Grandpa always seemed to pronounce it “Grandmaw” or would address her as “Maw”.

In the trailer there was always the faint smell of yeast. In the back of the trailer Grandpa usually had a batch of homemade wine going. Grandpa had no qualms about letting us sample the latest batch. He said wine would help our blood. He’d also suggest we not bother our mother with the fact we were wine samplers. To his credit, he’d usually only let us have a sip or three, not a whole glass. The summer day camps we went to were okay but what I looked forward to each summer was those two weeks up north with my grandparents. These days Grandma is in an assisted care nursing home where she has some independence and Grandpa is up in Heaven, making communion wine. At least that’s what I’d like to think Grandpa is doing.

I have another extended family that is special to me. These people have helped me through marital difficulties, personal problems, people I’ve laughed with, cried with or for, prayed with, prayed for, and had general good times. What makes these people special is I’ve never met any of them. Anyone who says that online relationships aren’t real probably hasn’t tried hard enough. I especially find the stock car world isn’t hung up on online or offline, just talking about life as seen through the eyes of stock car fans and rednecks. I divide my time between two boards, one like a coffee shop where the fun is of a gentle sort and the advice isn’t too harsh. The other one advice threads can sometimes get sidetracked by the younger generation who don’t have the experience but feel they know it all. These people would laugh at the thought that I am not a real person with feelings. We are a merry band of adventurers, always caring, sometimes kidding, and sometimes working through misunderstandings but in the end, true friends. Besides twenty years ago pen pals were all the rage. Now it’s a new century and e-pals have replaced pen pals.

I received a reminder the other day about another type of extended family. As Christians, we need to remember that we are all part of God’s family and to treat all people with respect. As I was talking on the phone with my friend Kay, she told me of an experience she had at a nearby coffee shop. Kay had left early to file her income tax return at the post office. Since she arrived before the post office opened, she decided to indulge in some coffee, a scone and a chance to read the paper. After she sat down, she noticed a woman looking hungrily at her scone. The woman definitely had the appearance of homeless and as the conversation unfolded, Kay’s original thought was confirmed. Kay kindly talked with the woman as well as sharing her food. She also reassured the woman that although there was no earthly family who cared for her, there was a Heavenly Father who did care about her. Kay ended by praying for the woman for better times.

Proverbs 3:27 Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it. KJV