Precious Jewels

When I was a little girl in first grade at the local private Seventh-Day Adventist school, I learned a hymn that has stuck with me forever. I sang it with fervor then, I learned to play it on my recorder, and I hummed it while nursing my babies at 3 in the morning. Now my kids hum it to their baby friends, and play it on their recorders. The hymn refers to little children, but it has become such a lexicon for me, I find it pops up in my head at the funniest times. I may not be the most spiritual person you know, but every once in a while, I surprise people with it, not the least, myself.

Like when my Mama, my Girly, my Boy, and I are all in the kitchen, singing rounds in harmony, and working all together to can peaches. I feel so blessed, listening to their bright voices, hearing them laugh, watching them interact with their Gramma, listening with rapt attention to her oft-repeated stories about canning with her Mama. I didn't get to know her, so this makes it even more special- that my kids get to enjoy working and being with her, and that she lets herself enjoy them, vision or no. May not sound like much, but it is huge. My mom and my kids' moments together are as precious to me as gemstones. They shine and shimmer- like opals (which I have always prefered over diamonds) glowing in the sunlight that streams through my finger-printed kitchen window.

Then I am reminded of the song again, when the counters and kitchen table are covered with sparking jewels of jars, in a rainbow of gem-like colors. The red of tomatoes, that came from my garden, the dark purple-blue of blackberries we picked from the back and side yards (and we have the scratches to prove it!), the reddish-yellow of Rainier cherries we got from the food bank (even if the jam didn't gel and I have to re-do them sometime this week, they are so very pretty!), and the pure golden yellow of orange-peach marmalade and canned peaches, made with peaches from my sister-in-law's peach tree. A table full of sparkling jewels that we all put the effort into making, and will all enjoy this winter.

And Auntie Pam, the Boy ran scraps out to the chickens, washed jars, peeled and pitted, and when he couldn't stand to be in the kitchen without making wierd screechy noises, mowed the lawn. He is a great helper, too. And he is still singing to us, even though his voice is changing from that sweet high clear little boy voice to a deeper, mellow young man voice. Another gem.

TTFN,
LB


When He cometh, when He cometh
To take up His jewels
Precious jewels, precious jewels
His loved and His own
Like the stars in the morning
His bright crown adorning
They shall shine in His beauty
Bright gems for his crown