Stand on my shoulders.....tell me what you see...

Last weekend, I was watching Sarah play basketball. She has really improved since last year. But, as I was watching, I was overwhelmed with the sense that my purpose in life was in she and Chris. I don't why I felt that way, but I did. I had a sense of calm that I've not experienced in a long time.

My family is very interesting. I am the youngest child of a youngest child. For most people my age, their grandfather fought in WWII. My dad was at Iwo Jima. For most people my age, their great grandparents were alive at the turn of the 20th century. My grandmother was born in 1885.

My dad lived a rough life growing up. His father was a share-cropper. Owned no land, but did all the work. My parents are part of the "Greatest Generation". They lived through the depression, fought the wars and helped make this country what it is today. My father left high school in his Senior year to join the Marines. He couldn't swim a lick, but the Marines took him anyway. That's what it was like in '41.

My parents worked all the time to send me to a private school. The neighborhood that I grew up in was pretty bad. The schools were bad. They felt it was worth it to sacrifice their time and energy for me. The college deal in my family was this: you will go for one year. You may choose to continue or quit after the first year. If you continue, we will pay for it. When I got my diploma, it was paid for. Amazing stuff for a firefighter.

God's timing is amazing. I believe that we sometimes limit God's plans to our own lifetime. His timing is so much more far reaching than that. His plan for my family may come to fruition 3 generations from now. One day it will all become clear.

I don't remember where I heard this quote from a father to his children, but it means a lot to me:

Stand on my shoulders, but tell me what you see....