Friends with Pens
Yesterday I went to the mailbox, and amongst all the junk mail was a card addressed to me! It was a card with a handwritten letter, inside, from one of my mentors, a previous pastor of mine! She made my day! As always, the card came on a day that I could use encouragement. It was so special and meant so much to me that someone would take the time to do that just for me! Hebrews 10:24-25, “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
Another thing I thought about recently was my childhood relationship with Mrs. Higgins, who was a pillar of my church. I walked from Roland-Grise School to her house to wait for Girl Scouts. She lived across from my church, so we would visit and have a snack. She made the best homemade tea cookies. We always laughed and had fun! She wore her hair in a tight bun, but she would take it down and let me brush it. I know no one else at church had seen her hair down! I think of her every time I make a covered dish because she told me, when I get her age, I do not ever have to make or take anything again! I am grateful for our relationship and the time spent together.
I thought about these things when Mrs. Terri, our Pine Valley United Methodist Church Children’s Ministry Coordinator, mentioned offering our PVUMC children penpals. The next week, on Mom’s birthday, a family friend stopped by with a young lady named Peyton. They had come to tell “Honey,” my Mom, that Peyton is her penpal. It turns out that Peyton lives down the street from Honey. Peyton’s “adopted” grandmother, Teresa, taught school with Honey for years, and they are good friends. Peyton’s “adopted” aunt, Elizabeth, was in Honey’s second-grade class. Elizabeth said when she heard who Peyton’s penpal was; she just cried - she knew it was a God thing. Peyton nor Honey knew many people at PVUMC. Terri did not know about this connection; she just told them, “I have the perfect pen pal for Peyton. Her name is Sylvia, but her family calls her Honey. She was a 2nd-grade teacher and is in her 80's.”
Letter writing was popular during Bible times. Ephesians is a book of the Bible that is a letter from the apostle Paul to people he knew and loved. He sent a message of grace and peace to the Christians of ancient Ephesus. I love the way Paul starts his letter in Ephesians 1:2, “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” That is an encouraging opening. What a great thing for the church to be teaching their children about encouraging others! Ecclesiastes 4:9-10, “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up.” Honey and Peyton told me they are excited about being pen pals because they will be able to visit, they will be like “family” and they are new friends. Honey said she likes to be with young people and learn from them because of her grandchildren!
Peyton and I talked about not being able to experience camp or Vacation Bible School this summer and how hard that is. Being new at PVUMC, it is hard to make new friends. She is excited about a new friendship with Honey. I love the quote, “We need old friends to help us learn to grow old and young friends to help us stay young.” In our visit, Honey and Peyton learned they have a lot in common. They both love saltwater, ice cream, the colors blue and orange, the book, “The Secret Garden” and flowers.
After talking to Peyton and Honey, I asked Mrs. Terri what she wanted to come from the penpal relationships. She said she hopes the older generation can share their wisdom of what really matters in life. And she hopes the children can serve God by sharing some of their joy and experience for life and get a little writing practice! For both, she hopes a new relationship forms, and when we can get back together, they can experience simple adventures together, like fishing, ice cream, and lemonade on the front porch!
Usually, our friends are the same age, but we miss something special when we do not have friends who are different ages than us. It is nice to have the perspective and experience of people who are at different life stages. Proverbs 13:20, “Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.” We all need each other. We can learn so much from each other just by taking the time to be a friend.