As I thought about what I might write about, many things came to my mind. I thought mostly about Shannon’s example of always wanting to have peace and serenity about her. I thought about how much she loved my brother, Shane, her sons, Justin & Ryan and her beautiful grand-daughter Cassidy and how grateful I was that they didn’t have any regrets in their relationships with one another. I am so grateful for the love and support she gave to each of them.
To mend fences requires first recognizing that there are people out there that we need to be the one to reach out and mend or correct our behavior towards them. I thought about the big and small things that I need to recognize and fix in my life.
I had a co-worker that I used to work with in another company that wanted to have more of a personal relationship than I did with her. Her position allowed her more time that she would go around and visit and as a result it was hard to pull away from her to focus on my tasks that I thought were ‘so important’. I thought about the many times I would avoid her because of this. I knew she was lonely and going through a rough time and just needed friends but I wasn’t a good one to her though she tried to be with me. This week, after thinking about those I needed to reach out to, her name came to my mind after saying my prayers on all those I needed to make amends to. I wasn’t sure how I would be able to find her and wondering what I could do to make things right. The next afternoon, she called me out of the blue about information she needed on an acquaintance of ours. I was so amazed and I was able to express how I was sorry for the way I had avoided her and explain why I had and express the good qualities that I was able to observe in her and the compassion she had for others. We left each other with a time set to go to dinner to catch up.
I was so grateful for Shane’s idea to create this web-site or I wouldn’t have even had her on my mind and I know I wouldn’t have been able to have made the connection with her and be quick enough in my thinking to know the things to say. I know that through the power of prayer, Our Father in Heaven will help us through the big and small things.
Even though this isn’t earth shaking, it is an example to me that I need to keep asking for help in knowing who I need to mend fences with and if I do so, He will help me every step of the way.
I am so grateful for the love I feel for my Shane & Shannon and how they have enriched my life. I will always be thankful for Shannon’s sweet notes and friendship. The older I get the more I understand how important our relationships are with others. I pray I can go out there and be inspired to ‘mend all the fences’ I need to.