Lately I’ve found myself thinking about the house/farm we
called home for all the years we were raising our kids. It was the same place
my grandpa was born. It was the same place my mom was born. The roots ran true
and deep and there’s no other place I would have wanted to raise them.
The house you raise your family in and the effort you put
into making it a home is vital to your child’s sense of self-worth and
confidence. But you might be surprised to learn that it’s not the size of the
house, the amenities of the house, or the address of the house that make it a
home. To your children, it is the culmination of your family’s ‘fingerprints’—the
tangible and intangible personality traits that make the home that builds your
children into adults.
I could spend a few minutes expounding on what I mean by family
fingerprints or personality traits, but instead, I’ll let a small portion of
Emma’s poem—one she wrote in high school—do the job for me.
Where I Come From—by Emma
Noble
I am the floor that
creaks…
The red tile kitchen
floor…
I am from 105.3 in my
brother’s first truck…
From the walnuts that
stain my hands…
From the chair I
stood on to dry dishes…
From my mom’s
flowerbeds, sidewalk chalk, gravel on my bare feet…
From a musty barn
full of sheep…
I am leftover cookie dough...
I am from pigtails and cowboy boots to t-shirts and peace signs...
I am from the scar on my finger from sticking rocks in the VCR when I was three...
I am from "Golden Girls" reruns...
Never having to lock our doors...
From my sisters' clothes...
From red church pews--when churches still had pews...
The metal bowl in the kitchen and knowing what's in every cabinet...
From my dad’s hankie
in his back pocket; he always has one…
I am from 12750
County Road 7160
Take it from Emma, parents; raising kids is about the little
things…a whole lot of little things that make life something to smile about.
Love,
Momma D
Copyright 2015 Darla Noble. No part of this can be used or copied without permission from the author.
