July 2, 2013

Who Are Your People?


Sometimes I look at my life and can't believe it's unfolding in such a wonderful way. Trust me, it isn't perfect by a long shot...but there seem to be so many opportunities around every bend and I'm certain there will be even more. And it's not that there's anything particularly special about me...I'm just daring to dream. You can do it too. I promise.

The thing that makes me the happiest about it all is knowing that the folks who are part of me are carried with me in every new adventure. I feel such strong ties to the people I come from...as different and diverse as they all are.

I come from people who came from Canton, North Carolina; Lovejoy, Tennessee; Denison, Texas; and a place called the 'Bloody 8th District.'

I come from people who say 'liberry' instead of 'library.'

I come from people who went to work each day in the shirt factory, the grocery store, the church pulpit, the university bursar's office, the steel mill, and the tobacco field.

I come from people who made their beds hard and lay in them; from people who got up before the sun; from people who kept the home fires burning; from people who believed all you get out of life is what you enjoy.

I come from people who praised the Lord; from people who rebuked the devil; from people who blessed your heart; from people who wanted my life to be better and easier than theirs had been.

My life is better and easier than theirs were. And while I don't deserve the fruits of the labor of all those folks who came before me...I sure am enjoying it.

What kind of people do you come from? I bet they had some stories to tell.