"Tell Me in Accents (of Wonder!)"

 

Dear family and dear friends,                                                                         12 March 2026

 

Oh, what a beautiful morning!  Val and I walked the LONG walk, rejoicing in the two-year window that we were granted after his stroke 24 months ago.  What a blessing it has been to reconnect with children, grandchildren; rejoice and empathize with dear ones who have difficulties in their health and varying aspects of their lives.   

What we are learning:  From Grandson #5:  In French there are many accents.  Accents can be useful.  What will I accent today?  What motivates, lifts, teaches, inspires my heart? 

From Granddaughter # 7: (creating barbecue sauce from scratch: “Amy Cross says, ‘Measure with your heart!’”   

(This picture shows what her family does with vegetables with Amy Cross's tips—add vinegar water for freshness.)

The cooking granddaughter also responded to my question – “Will God really remove our stumbling blocks, to be NO more confounded (confused, befuddled, perplexed, tripped up?)  “Well,” she says, “you KNOW, stumbling blocks CAN be made into stepping stones!”

From granddaughter #3: (responding to the story of Ben Kjar, a youth experiencing a genetic cranial difference): “His parents had him try EVERYTHING, before he chose wrestling to excel in!” Could variety invite breadth and confidence to preference?  (Hoorah to a busy reader and student, who won her first Davis Academic League invitational, (where students are quizzed about many subjects)  last Thursday!) 

From Grandson #6 (about the puzzle we were piecing that included mostly sky, a little cloud and more ocean): 

 

“Grandma, look for the gentle curve.”  Are there any gentle curves in your puzzle today?  Also, “Watch for the obvious line.  Subtle colors.  Can you match them?”  This grandson invited us to hear him speak to his neighborhood congregation about new starts.  Is springtime offering you a new start? 

A woman who spoke afterwards explained a message from a movie she had seen remembering a Biblical account of animals pairing, side by side.  If I want to develop patience, I cannot ask for an easy day every day.  If I want to develop love, it may require more than just a fuzzy feeling. Perhaps we can learn from passing notes:  playing one notes directly next to another can provide dissonance--a less than harmonious sound-- tension, discomfort.  Difficulty. Challenge.  We are learning some days, the greater our difficulty, the more welcome and glorious the resolution, with marvelous overtones.  Thank you, each for adding to our overtones.  For helping add accent, stepping stones, gentle curves, variety and a little heart measure to our bonus earth hours.  We love you!  Laurene and Val