The Dress

Our youngest granddaughter, Emma Rose, will be dedicated at the Pekin UMC on Sunday, July 22. Rachel asked if I would make her a christening gown, as I had made the one that Kailyn wore. Of course, I said yes.

Now... a few things that have hit me lately... having been diagnoised with OA (degenerative arthritis), my hands just don't want to work the way they used to. So, will I still be able to do things like this when Carly and Michael are older?

I recently spent all day putting together wedding flowers for a young couple I know. By the end of the day I found myself working 45 minutes and resting my hands for 15. That seemed to help, but I was definitely ready for some additional medication at the end of it all. Then it struck me... would I be able to make Carly's bridal bouquet? Yes, she is only 15, but in 10 years will I be able to do for her what I have done for her sisters and countless others?

Last night, I began working on Emma's dress. As I finished the major portion of the dress (at 1:00 AM!) Carly looked at me and said, "Maybe you can just make another one so that I can put it back so that if I have a girl someday she will have a dress from Nanny." Wow....

There is something inside each of us that longs for that attachment, that little something that says "I am a part of a family who loves me". Whether it is the bouquet of flowers you carry down the aisle, the dress for a christening, or a blanket created with love, when we look at these items we know that the creator had us in mind when they were creating it.

I guess the greatest gift we can pass on to our children can't be created by us... just passed down from generation to generation....and that is a longing to build a realtionship with Christ. We can't create our children's relationship for them, but we can begin to weave together a foundation on which their relationship can be built. The coolest thing is that this gift won't collect dust, won't need to be stored, and won't fade with the years...it can be new and fresh every day. The Creator of all things was thinking of you, and me and everyone else when He created this world and placed us in it. He was longing for a relationship with us, and waiting anxiously for us to hear His call and answer. The gift of his Son, and eternal life through His saving grace places us in the greatest family of all time... and we are loved!!!

Maybe I will have to create a bouquet for Carly to carry down the aisle, or flowers for Michael's future bride. I might even have to make a dress for their future daughters (which will ensure they only have sons!) More importantly, I will need to continue to lay a foundation for both Carly and Michael on which they can build a solid relationship with Christ. After all, that is only gift I can give that will truly last!