GON Reader Letter #1
It Was a Special Memory For Both of Us
Good morning, Maria,
I think you'll enjoy this little story I'm going to share with you. My five-year old great-granddaughter, Anna, stayed overnight with me Saturday. Her parents just brought a new baby home and I was giving them a little break to get settled.
I had a coloring book and crayons at the kitchen table to amuse Anna after breakfast while I drank my morning coffee and caught up on emails and news in my office. The first thing I read was your lovely article on The Gift of Time. It was also perfectly timed for that moment! I picked up my coffee, went
back to the kitchen, and Anna and I happily colored pictures of cats together. It will be a special memory for both of us.
Thanks,
Maggie in
California
GON Reader Letter #2
Why Friends
Matter
Hi Maria,
Regarding your December 4th issue, I have a similar group of friends that get together to scrapbook and craft. It started out as scrapbook crops and has morphed. It began as a once-a-month evening or day crop and two weekends a year. Now we do week long crops 3-4 times a year at one's home or a local event venue because we lost our space we used for the monthly and weekend crops.
We try to keep it as local for most as possible (many have moved away but still try to come) so that those who can’t take a week off can at least drop in to visit or crop/craft for a few hours/days. We don’t see everybody every time but we manage to see everybody at least once during the year. We have been doing this for over 20
years.
We mostly scrapbook but we also have girls who quilt, make greeting cards and Christmas crafts/presents or other projects during these times. We have grown close and have been there for each other through happy events and celebrations, sickness, cancer
treatments, deaths, and accidents.
This past summer we did a retreat for a week up in the North GA mountains at one member’s retirement cabin. Unfortunately, one of the girls and I were involved in an accident and I was hospitalized in Atlanta for several
days. My sister-in-law was amazed at how the girls cared for me at the hospital, relayed information to my family and work, packed all my supplies and belongings up and got them home and also got my car back home.
Once I did get back home, they continued to help
out along with my other friends, church, and Sunday School group. We keep a group chat going to keep up with each other and we always look forward to our next time together. I personally believe EVERYONE needs friends, especially lifelong friends. The Bible says the paralytic man was healed because of the faith of his friends. That's why friends matter! Thank you for all you do!
-- Cindy P
GON Reader Letter #3
Longing for the Love, Conversations, and Laughs
Hello Maria,
In reference to your December
4th issue, our kids are 32 and 26 years old, but our annual tradition is the Christmas dinner we organize among the mothers of the kids who shared classroom and teachers when they were a lot younger.
Our kids may not have contact anymore, they even moved to other cities and areas of the country, but the mothers still remain in the same neighborhood and we organize a dinner with small little presents, gathering and remembering those times when our now adult kids were little kids.
I'm longing for that reunion, and love the conversations, the laughs, and sharing moments with the other mums.
-- Helena Martin, Barcelona, Spain
