Looking at the photograph of Grandmother and Granddaddy on their wedding day that was 88 years ago, I see an 18-year-old girl and 21-year-old boy whose lives were full of promise despite getting married during the Great Depression that gripped America in the early 1930s.
I wonder what their dreams were.
The very next year, they held their first-born, a daughter, who would grow up to become my mother, a grandmother, a great-grandmother before passing this year.
As with all newlyweds, that young couple, who would become my grandparents, couldn't anticipate what the coming years would involve. Over the next 62 years, they would experience joy and grief, see World War II change their lives, their country. They would give birth to three daughters, lose pre-born babies, become grandparents then great-grandparents. They would bury their parents, their siblings.
But, all of that was in the unseen future.
Hindsight allows us to reflect on life's lessons.
As I recently held a newborn granddaughter, I recalled the births of my daughters, then sons. Especially with the first, being a mother was uncharted territory. I was full of hope, dreams, plans.
Being a grandmother is quite different from being a parent and the perspective allows us the privilege of being less strict than we may have been with our own children.
With reflection and introspection during this holiday season and as we in our family commemorate several birthdays, I consider Mary, the young girl chosen by God to bear the Son of God.
What hopes did she have that were shattered with that announcement? She had followed the normal course for a young Hebrew girl and was engaged to be married. She probably anticipated a normal life which included getting married, bearing and raising children in her home town near her parents and possibly grandparents. But, the announcement of the angel changed all of that!
She was pregnant but not married. Who would believe the truth? She would become the subject of gossip and possibly was ostracized by the religious people of her community. Those who live in small towns know that the gossip continues and, despite getting married, having other children and continuing what was a "normal" life in that day, there were those who would whisper about her first-born.
At 64 years of age, I "see" life differently than I did at 20 or 40 or even 50. Thankfully, God has softened and humbled me as I've learned through the trials and tribulations and joys and successes of life. And, yes, at 86, I'll see it even differently.
This year, Christmas, then New Year's, may be different for you than many of the previous holidays have been.
It may be the first without a loved one. It may be the first as a bride, a new mom, a widow, but it's not outside the scope of God's plan and His hand is still holding yours if you choose.
May you, no matter what your status or age, find joy this Christmas season.
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Editor's note: Annette Beard is the managing editor of The Times of Northeast Benton County, chosen the best small weekly newspaper in Arkansas for five years. A native of Louisiana, she moved to northwest Arkansas in 1980 to work for the Benton County Daily Record. She has nine children, six sons-in-law, a daughter-in-law, nine grandsons, five granddaughters and one more granddaughters due soon. The opinions expressed are those of the author. She can be reached at [email protected].