What do BLTs, peanut butter
and jelly, grilled cheese, and I have in common? Yep, we are all
sandwiches. I generally think of myself as fried bologna with cheese
(if you know me, you know about the cheesy part), happily ensconced
between four
buns (think about it), my elderly mom
on one side and my college daughter on the other.
Being part of the so-called
sandwich generation* just sort of showed up on my life menu one day
and rather than spit it out with displeasure, I have decided to
gobble it up with glee. Oh, sure, there are days when I would really
like to send this sandwich back to the kitchen, but when I look at it
through the eyes of the Master Chef, I realize it is nourishing me in
countless ways.
For one, I am learning
patience. I thought after serving 27 years in the military and
having three children and a workaholic husband, I knew all about
patience. Wrong! When my 89-year-old Mom moved in with us, I
quickly discovered there were all new levels of patience I had yet to
explore. After a year, I still don’t have the
get-ready-to-go-someplace routine down pat, which is why you need to
politely smile at us when we come slogging into church late, yet
again . . . occasionally without our teeth OR our hearing aids. On
the other side of the sandwich, our
22-year-old-soon-to-be-college-graduate-daugther is planning her June
wedding and that, too, has taught me patience (“You don’t like
the first dress we bought?!”) AND gratitude.
Gratitude, you ask? How can I
experience gratitude when money is going out the door faster than
cowboys at a heavy metal concert? Well, my heart is filled with
thanksgiving that our daughter understands and fully embraces the
sanctity of marriage; that she has found a Godly young man who shares
her values and loves her unconditionally; and that all of her
collections of Barbies, Beanies, and books will eventually be taking
up residence somewhere else. I am also thankful that my Mom has
gotten to be part of the wedding planning process, adding her nearly
nine decade’s worth of wisdom and practicality to the mix.
Not surprisingly, the Master
Chef has spiced up my sandwich life with other nutritional tidbits
beyond patience and gratitude. Yes, there also has
been a squirt of humility, a pinch of compassion, a sprinkle of
steadfastness, and a double measure of joy in all things.
If you find yourself as part
of the sandwich generation, chow down, friend! Sit back and savor
the meal. One day soon it will be but a memory, so enjoy the rich
flavors while you can.
“Consider it pure joy, my
brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know
that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance
must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not
lacking anything.”
- James 1:2-4
*Those
sandwiched between aging parents who need care and/or help and their
own children and grandchildren.
By
Sue Busler
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