Counting Your Blessings ( Beth B)

Ken surprised me by suggesting we spend our Memorial Day visiting my Grandma Phyllis! (That man is such a keeper!) It has been a little over a month since my grandfather died. My grandparents would have been married 71 years this June. Grandma Phyllis got married two weeks after graduating from high school. So she is struggling to deal with a reality that she has never experienced before, i.e. loneliness. Although she is surrounded by people, she really feels the absence of her beloved husband. I expected our visit to be a time where I could bring Grandma comfort. As always, though, it was my Grandma Phyllis that brought me joy.

She continuously lists off her blessings. Not just to herself, but she readily shares the good things in her life with whomever will listen. As family, we are introduced to everyone in the retirement home, as she excitedly brags on us. Listening to her recall 89 years of blessings, you'd think that my Grandma Phyllis had a perfect life. Far from it, some of the things she endured would make grown men cry. My Grandmother however, refuses to complain. She really has no time for complainers (or tobacco or war). In fact she has given up watching the news, because she "can't understand how people could treat each other so horribly".

When my brother-in-law met my Grandma, he said, "The world sure would be better if there were more like Phyllis in it." He couldn't be more correct. I believe it is because she chooses the positive every time. Always quick to compliment and encourage, Grandma makes everyone feel good. It is this attitude that is lacking in our world. We are commanded to give thanks in everything. By her positivism, this is what Grandma has chosen to do and we all could learn from that example.