Scrolling and Strolling

 

I had a good chunk of my Saturday tasks accomplished, and my feet and back were telling me a brief rest was in order.

As I headed to sit down and pick up my phone, I saw the stack of photo albums from my mom I’ve been on-again/off-again working on scanning.

I was transported back in time to March 1987 when we went to California to help my grandparents who were constructing a house there.  

I remember my Grandpa paying me 25 cents every time I swept the complete foundation.  Then he would take us  to get what he called a “nifty Thrifty” ice cream cone for a quarter.

As other memories came flooding back and I moved from photo to photo, I turned the page and was transfixed by this photo.

My Great Grandpa and Grandma Mickelson walking together down the lane there, at Holderness Hills. 

Hand in hand, still looking toward each other after decades of marriage which included countless trials, imperfections, tragedies, blessings and miracles.  

I was drawn to my phone but instead of scrolling through the lives of strangers, I was instead drawn into the histories, stories and pictures  of Grandma Norma Mickelson. 

President James E Faust implored, “...begin to unlock the knowledge of who you really are by learning more about your forebears. Alex Haley, the author of the book Roots, said: “In all of us there is a hunger, marrow-deep, to know our heritage—to know who we are and where we have come from. Without this enriching knowledge, there is a hollow yearning. No matter what our attainments in life, there is still a vacuum, an emptiness, and the most disquieting loneliness.” 

We can have exciting experiences as we learn about our vibrant, dynamic ancestors. They were very real, living people with problems, hopes, and dreams like we have today.”

Reading about Grandma Mickelson makes me more grateful, more focused and more tolerant and patient as I see the blessings that come from the art of contentment and love.