Nouwen: Telling Our Story this Advent
“Waiting patiently in expectation does not necessarily get easier as we become older… As we age, we are tempted to settle down in a routine way of living and say: ‘Well, I have seen it all.… There is nothing new under the sun.… I will just take it easy and take the days as they come.’ But in this way, our lives lose their creative tension. We no longer expect something new to happen. We become cynical or self-satisfied or simply bored.”—Henri Nouwen
I think of the regular routine of so many seniors our age. Many think they deserve to rest because they have worked hard for many years. But I am learning there are many forms of rest. We can sit and talk or watch movies with our grandchildren. Eventually, we will tell our story to them. This is one of our most significant ministries to let those who will live on after us know the story of our family. My experience is that they may not be interested in hearing unless we do something together and let them know how much we love them.
My husband occasionally told family stories while he took our grandchildren to school. But he didn’t do it every day, or they might become bored! We can be storytellers while fishing, walking, hiking, crafting, fixing dinner, or eating together. Telling our family story gives our children and grandchildren roots that connect them to a loving God. It also helps us recount our own story, the purpose of our lives, and our origins. A good time for stories is at holidays, graduations, or birthdays when we share past times.
Do not be disheartened if family members are not interested. Consider writing or making an oral video of your story. Often after we die, maybe not until our family members are our age do they become interested. My experience is that the older we become, the more we look for our roots. It is a way of grounding ourselves, connecting us to the earth from which we came and will return. At each telling of our story, we find even more awareness.
As we share our story, we also become increasingly aware of how a loving God works in our lives and our family at every turn, every day. We often only comprehend this when we share our family’s history and recognize the pattern of how God and God’s love were and are with us at every turn.
Family gatherings, such as meals at Thanksgiving and Christmas, are excellent times to hear and tell family stories.
Spend some time this Advent sharing your story, but first, listen as someone else shares their story with you.
