Thought for the Day - Friday 29 May

Thought for the Day – Friday 29^th May

Hard to believe but it is Friday again! Another week has come and gone with some of us still having no access to a hairdresser!

So, with that in mind, and with apologies to those who are ‘follically challenged’ and have no need of a hairdresser, here is our light-hearted text for today offering reassurance:

‘The glory of youths is their strength, but the beauty of the aged is their grey hair.’ (Proverbs 20: 29)

‘Grey hair is a crown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life.’ (Proverbs 16: 31)

All I can say is thank goodness for that then because my ‘crown of glory’ is becoming ever more evident as each day of ‘Lockdown’ passes but I am reassured to know that it must be because I am living a ‘righteous life’ and also that I must not worry because it is considered to be a sign of beauty!!

A little more seriously though, I do remember as a child that there seemed to be a lot more grey haired people around then, no one seemed to bother about trying to hide it in those days, indeed I remember some of our neighbours actually being very proud of their grey hair as for them it was almost viewed as a symbol of their age and their wisdom and people often would go to them for advice on all sorts of things. Certainly in our household we, as children, were always taught to respect older people, to respect their opinions and, even if we didn’t agree with them at the time, to always listen politely and be polite in our responses when speaking with them because our parents would say actually they probably did know best – sadly, this is something which does not always happen today! I suppose if I were being flippant I might say that is partly because it is harder for children today to identify who those aged, wiser people are because increasingly as we age we do try to hide it!

I remember, too, sitting on doorsteps with my mum and older neighbours and revelling in the stories they told of times past, for was that not the way we younger folk learned of past times through neighbourly tales and also at our grannies knees. Stories handed on through the ages which then became part of our present and which we could then pass on to others in the future as we became the aged. I do think as part of our process of ageing we do reach a point in that process where we begin to reminisce more and more – I certainly saw that in my own mum’s life and in the lives of my parents-in-law, indeed I am beginning to see it in my own life too if truth be told - and I wonder if this may be part of us inherently trying to pass on those stories for the future. I do think that passing on of stories is so important - I know, from many a funeral visit, that many, many people regret not asking their older loved ones about their past for then sadly the stories are lost forever, as is the wisdom they might have had to offer. Such a pity.     

So, please let’s not worry if our hair is showing signs of ageing remember it is our beauty, it is our crown of glory gained from living a righteous life. Remember too, that as we age, which we all do, younger folk may be looking to us for wisdom and for that passing on of the stories – for both young and old have much to offer in God’s world. It may be difficult to verbally pass on our stories during this time of ‘Lockdown’ but maybe this is a good time for those of us who are older to talk to those in our household about the past or if we are the younger ones - ask someone in your household about their past -- or maybe we could just write some of our stories down so that those stories of ours will not disappear but be there ready to be passed on to future generations.

Prayer

Loving Lord,

The same today, tomorrow and forever, believing in you we become part of your story and what a wonderful story that is! A story which should bring a contentment to our hearts and minds as we live out our lives. Lord, help us to share not only your story but also our own stories that these stories may live on in the hearts and minds of those who hear them ready to be passed on to future generations. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen

Friday Fun Time:

Here are your five questions for today!

1. What do you like to do best on sunny days?

2. Where would be your dream destination for a holiday?

3. Is there a habit you have which you would really like to change?

4. What is your favourite meal?

5. What is your favourite song?