Edith Murray was called Granneth by her family.  She liked it much better than Grandma Edith.  The little ones learned quickly to say something that sounded like Granneth.  Her grandchildren were always anxious to show off their new ones as they came along.  Six grands and now nine great grands.  She met all of them before they were three months old.

Then that seemed to be it. 

Now they had moved all over the country.  Why, Steven’s family had been around the world since the Armed Forces were his career.  Barb had an amazing success story.  But her children were raised by a nanny.  Only Clay’s family stayed close by. 

They lived a couple doors to her right, just across the street.  That’s where Billy lived. 

She saw Billy almost every day.  He would text, “Granneth, can I come over?”  Yes, there was always time for Billy.  Sometimes she would call his mom and ask if she could come pick up Billy and run around with him for a couple of hours.  And Billy was now getting big enough to help her out sometimes.  He liked to unload the car after their grocery shopping. 

He loved stories.  Fiction, Bible Heroes, American Patriots.  He even loved her family stories, generally sparked off by a rummage in old papers and photos.

“You should not be partial, Edith,” her friends would say.  Edith felt guilty so she pulled back a bit.  She didn’t want Billy to be spoiled by her attention. 

She tried to be sure she wrote letters to the others.  She tried to learn the new texting stuff.  But that was not her!  She couldn’t “bond” by a text no matter how much she tried.

Edith protested with friends who accused her of being partial.  “No.  I love all my babies.  I held them all in my arms.  They were all beautiful and I could see “smart” in their eyes!  They are part of me.  Same relation.”

Finally she met someone who understood.  “Edith, what you are missing is having a relationship with the others.  You have a relationship with Billy.  Don’t feel guilty.  Everyone of those children could have the same kind of relationship with you if circumstances made it possible.”

Dear Friends, Jesus made all circumstances conducive to our having a relationship with him. Where ever you are, no matter you lot in life, you can have as much “Jesus” as you are willing to pursue. It is your call. Revelation 3:20 says: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”

image: pexels.com (Alex Green)