"...They are God's gift to you, as you are to them." -Desmond Tutu

TODAY I AM GRATEFUL FOR ANTIQUE SHOP SATURDAYS. Sarah and I wound up over at the Roxy this afternoon, on recommendation from a good friend of ours. Now, I've been to antique shops in the past so I was delightfully surprised when we found what the Roxy had to offer. This place was to the ceiling with comfort for me! Around every nook, and in every cranny there was amazing finds...in fabulous condition, might I add. The most fulfilling and comforting part for me was that it was like walking through the home of every grandmother & great-grandmother I have, ALL AT ONCE! It was a heavenly way to enjoy our Saturday. Vintage clothing from every decade, including hats, shoes, gloves, gowns, jackets, dresses...and the price tags were complete STEALS! There were dish sets and books I enjoyed remembering by running my fingers over their patterns just to feel closer to my grandparents. I reckon today meant so much to me because lately I've been aching for my grandparents who have passed on. In addition to missing family, I've, in a sense,been internally mourning the state of the world we now live in. While looking at an antique fly fishing rod I remembered when all that mattered was fishing and camping with one grandpa. Just the sight of old barnwood apple boxes brought me right back to riding the tractor through our orchard with another grandpa. Perusing through aprons, recipe boxes, and flour sack towels caused me to miss the smell of my grandmother's homemade rolls & the delicious flavor of her raspberry freezer jam. Old jewelry boxes called out for me to simply operate their latches. The cool feel of the metal, as I opened one of those padded treasures, took me back to sitting at grandma's vanity and admiring all her costume jewelry & shoe clips. Old vinyl records transported me back to countless Sunday evenings spent watching the Lawrence Welk Show or in front of the big old record player/coffee table, so we could sing along with the Sound of Music. Life seemed to mean more back then. Little was taken for granted. Everything was kept, well cared for, and used for generations. Today made me want to focus more on the quality in my life rather than the quantity and grab hold of the opportunities to create lasting, cherished memories for today's children...so that on a Saturday afternoon decades down the road, a young woman who I will be connected to will walk into an antique shop and find joy as she feels closer to me.