Jake's Legacy, Mine?

Goodbye Jake! Jake lived with us for 14 years.  His entire world was just loving on family.  As a Boxer he was a very large lap dog!   If he could he would have lived in my lap.  His place was on the couch right next to my chair!  His sole purpose was to do whatever made is family happy.  On walks he would always be close by, watching making sure I didn't get to far ahead or behind him.  When I walked into a room his whole body would shake with excitement.  Even my frustration with him always being underfoot never really persuaded him to leave the room I was in.  He came immediately when called, seldom did anything he knew he wasn't suppose to--(except he was a horrible puppy.  He chewed up everything in sight!)   I loved that dog, because he loved me!  But, he never had any original thoughts.  No other characteristics except loving his family continually.  

I do believe for most women our sole purpose is to love our families.  We serve them, we sacrifice for them, we give up unnecessary items we want, for them, and in time loose our own identity because of them.  We become our many roles.  We live through our roles, through our husbands, our childrens, even if we have work, that work, in many cases, is to support our love for the family, not because our jobs feeds a deep purpose within us.  I have a wonderful friend, who I believe has the gift of service.  Everyday she cares deeply for those around her.  She looks for ways to help serve not only her family but those whom she believes need her support.  Her sole purpose is to love and serve on her family and others.  She believes God wants her to serve.  And He does, however unlike Jake, she needs to find her uniqueness and allow herself the time to feed her uniqueness.  She needs to approach life deliberately and make room for her own development.  I don't believe that we should ignore our own created being!  It like tell God,  "I don't believe I'm worth the effort to develop myself."  Which is what we are telling him by totally ignoring who we are.  What is our passions?  How do we develop them?  How do we rediscover them?  Even the smallest action will empowers us!

I remember this day, I was visiting the Oregon beach with my brothers and sisters.  No-one else was there I felt humbled yet empowered because I suddenly knew deep down what my place was in the world.  When I first got married and moved to the farm, my father-in-law didn't believe women should be apart of working it, or for that matter, in on the decision making.  There really was nothing wrong with that belief, he had been taught that and it was his generation that believed women worked in the house,  take care of the children, and make meals.  I didn't really mind.   I loved being a wife and mother.  Spending the day with my children was the highlight of my life.  But I now realize I have other gifts too, and I can change the world with one deliberate act at a time.