This is something my precious grandma always said to me any my siblings growing up. “You can grow old in numbers but never grow up.”
She was saying, you may get old by the number of years you’ve been alive but never loose that childlike heart. Enjoy life and live it to the fullest. My grandma sure did. She loved being funny and silly. I can remember one time she and my dad had a blast on his motorcycle. My grandma grew up during the early 1900’s and during the depression she had her family. She never had much because times were so hard and she never complained either. So to her these special moments of being silly or enjoying life, was her greatest treat in life. Not money, but family. She was forever “Motorcycle Grammy” after that. She may have been around 80 years old but it didn’t stop her from enjoying life.
My Grandma’s blessed life
I can take a lot of lessons and knowledge from my grandma on many things such as enjoying life, celebrating your birthday in royal style, remember the good times and bad with reverence and learning. I believe the greatest gifts she left for me were praying for everything and having a deep relationship with Jesus, and family heritage. Her relationship was so deep with Jesus when my grandpa passed away in 1976 that I can remember her crying because he was gone and feeling the loss in her heart deeply. She never fell apart, she grieved and cried occasionally, but she knew where he was and would with him again. She kept her family close by and lived life. It’s not always the same for everyone but her faith was so deep in Jesus she knew He was carrying her. She lived the rest of her years until 2004, by herself and enjoyed being around her family. I can remember reading Psalm 92 to her many times that evening as this was her favorite scriptures. I am forever grateful for the life my grandma lived and the love she showed us, my family, for God and family. Oh, trust me there was still issues with some family members and including me but she loved unconditionally and was always there with open arms to welcome them back in the fold. Just as Jesus does.
Family Legacy
My family legacy is another gift she gave me as I’ve said before. Knowing so much about where the Millican’s came from in Ireland and Scottland, and when the arrived in America and where they traveled to and settled. Like my GG grandfather’s in Bosque County, Texas in the early-mid 1800’s. And where does God move me when He says it’s time to leave your hometown and go where I am planting you. Right next to Bosque County in McLennan County, Waco, Texas. I didn’t know but He did!!! I have always known where my GG grandparents were from but I never knew I’d be living near there.
Blessings
Never grow up, those can be words that cause a little confusion because we tell our children who are acting silly or cause chaos, “Why don’t you grow up” Well being accountable and respectful are completely different that living life to the fullest and enjoying life. Yes, life can bring times of heartache to your life and cause you to pause and grieve like my grandpa’s death and the death of my grandma’s sibling and old friends. But life’s journey’s never robbed her of her joy and peace in Christ Jesus. I can still remember the most incredible day I got to spend with my precious grandma. It was the day she died, October 20, 2004. She had suddenly gotten ill and her body was shutting down. She slipped into a coma state and my sister and I stayed with her that morning so my parents could get a little sleep and take care of a few things. We played the Gaither’s Group over and over and sang to her, talk to her, prayed over her and then at the end she sat up, raised up her right hand as to be reaching for someone’s hand, Jesus or my grandpa, and just sat there. She laid back down and in a few short hours she left the world for her Forever Home in Glory. I will never forget that day as long as I live. Holy Spirit had filled the room to overflowing and the nurses could feel it too. Being there to see your precious family into Heaven is a glorious journey and it changed the way I look at leaving this earth.
As my grandma would say at the end of this, “If you don’t know who Jesus is and you want to, just ask someone or ask Him yourself because He will show you how to come to Him and receive Ever Lasting Life in Christ Jesus.
God Bless and enjoy living life to the fullest.
TonniLea Millican-Larson
