On the Road to Health

For those who have been wondering about why my column hasn’t been in the Courier:

My husband and I left on Nov. 16 for Iowa to spend Thanksgiving with my brother and to visit with other family members and friends. We returned on Nov. 29. But by the time we did I was fighting a really nasty cold. A clerk at a checkout counter in a store I was in was sneezing and coughing and not covering their face or turning their head. Consequently, I was infected. For the past several weeks I have been sleeping a great deal and now feel I am on the road to better health.

The sons and daughters of my husband’s brother and his wife, both of whom are deceased, arranged a supper so we had a chance to visit not only with them but their children and grandchildren as well.

Watching all the activity going on, one word surfaced -- continuity.

In actuality, there were in a way four generations present since my husband was there. I thought about how his grandfather had homesteaded north of Nashua. And then one of his daughters had three sons and a daughter -- my husband’s mother. Those four individuals went on to marry and raise a family. And their children did the same. As have some of the grandchildren and before long, the great-grandchildren will do the same.

But in each one of these individuals there is knowledge and history stretching back over the centuries and years. There is also a great deal of wisdom each one possesses -- wisdom gained from life’s experiences of every person who has gone before them.

Children learn a great deal from their parents. The knowledge the children gain has been passed down from one generation to the next. And each generation adds their own history, their own knowledge, experiences, ideas which is passed on to future generations.

Part of that evening was devoted to a birthday party for one of the grandchildren -- a little girl who was celebrating her fourth birthday. As we all sang “Happy Birthday” I saw the love and joy surrounding the child. And I thought that this child has a rich and full history to draw on during her lifetime. She has parents and grandparents who will do their very best to help and guide her on her journey.

The lives of her ancestors will provide the continuity she will need to live her life to the fullest. Hopefully a life filled with love, joy, peace, contentment, and success. A life that will be continued in her succeeding generations.