Today's Journey Forward assignment asks me to tell you about my role model. Answering this is simple. My role model was and is my paternal grandmother. Although she is no longer here, she influences my life on a daily basis.
Stubborness
Even though being stubborn is supposedly an Irish trait, I'm pretty sure I inherited my stubborn streak from her instead of my mom's Irish Catholic side of the family. And, ask anyone close to me, I have a mean stubborn streak!
Integrity
She taught me about integrity. Character is the most important thing a person has. It matters what you do, even if no one else is looking.
Toughness
She taught me how to be tough - I think I learned how to put on a facade from her. Obviously, this can be taken too far, but in general, there's no need to air dirty laundry in public. If you are living your life correctly, that's what matters. You don't need public vindication.
Dilligence
She taught me how to work hard and finish projects. I can't tell you how many projects we did over the years. Whether it was tilling the garden or putting up fencing to keep the deer out or making dinner for Pop-pop, we were always doing something.
Porch Sitting
Most importantly, she taught me the value of porch sitting. Every evening, we'd run across the field to her house and she'd give us pop-ices. We'd sit on the glider and rock and chat and stay out until the fireflies started dancing through the yard. I learned about her and her life. She always took the time to listen to me and what I thought was important.
Taking time each day to slow down and really listen to people, to enjoy this wonderful world we live in, that's what you learn to do when you porch sit.
Try it out. Let me know how it goes for you.
It's hard in today's world to really truly unplug, and slow down. There are always a million things to do, but honestly, if you aren't taking the time to enjoy or participate in your relationships, what's the real value of getting those other things done?
