Thoughts about '68 reunion

Here are my thoughts about our class of ’68 reunion. (From Greg)

On the drive back to Coeur d’Alene from our 40^th class reunion I got all reflective and philosophical. I thought about how we have all, for the most part, gone through the same stages of life together: moving through the awkward & weird transition from teenagers into adulthood; through the frantic search to find a spouse (who, in at least in my case, would hang in there with me); through the training & choosing of careers that we have slaved away at; and wearily treaded through the confused state of parenthood. I think that this might be one of the reasons we continue to want to reconnect with one another – to compare notes to see how and the heck we can get through the next stage of life.

As I listen to some of you classmates share your stories, there seemed to be themes that many of us are experiencing at this stage of our lives: the joys of grand parenting; grief over the loss of a loved one; laughter about the goofy things we do; crying over estranged relationships; deep fulfillment of unfailing love; fears and struggles related to health issues; financial securities and insecurities; defining and redefining priorities in life; expressing concerns about our kids; helping our parents transition through to the next stage of their lives; and thinking about what legacy we might leave…

But for the seven-hour trip back home, I wrote down a bunch of questions that I have for this stage of our lives. So, I thought I’d pass them on to you to see if you are asking yourself similar questions and I’d like to know how you might answer any of these questions. So, please write back and let me know.

1. How do I draw the line between helping our kids and enabling them? Am I encouraging them or am I still trying to give them advice? Do I just spoil my grandkids, or have I earned the right to speak into their lives to help direct them?
2. Did I or have I done everything I could for my parents? Am I beating myself up with guilt? Or am I shrugging my shoulders and trying to convince myself that what I did was good enough?
3. What keeps me from actively seeking to reconcile broken relationships? Am I trying to justify my knee jerk reactions by playing the blame game and claiming that “they started it?” Do I understand what fears tend to hold me back?
4. Do I try and justify rewarding myself with my addictive behaviors for: overcoming some obstacle, being a martyr, achieving some goal, to numb some pain, or to camouflage some reality?
5. Do I sometimes feel victimized by life circumstances and believe that the world owes me a favor and when nobody pays up, do I feel cheated? Or do I think that I need to pick myself up by my bootstraps and move on? Or do I ask for help?
6. Am I living my life as if it has design and purpose? Or do I try and make do with whatever I invent as sort of make-it-up-as-I-go philosophy? Or do I embrace or avoid examining God’s standard for living laid out in the Bible?
7. Do I see my life’s story as part of a bigger story being written or is it all about me? Am I willing to research the claims that the Bible says about God’s story?
8. Do I intentionally invite others to challenge my views of life or do I feel threatened by other lifestyles?
9. Do I solicit the support of others when I experience loss or do I tend to isolate myself? Am I there for others when they go through the tough stuff?
10. Do I continue to view myself as someone who has something valuable to offer others or do I believe that I have paid my dues and want to coast on out of here?
11. Do I write people off who have hurt me or someone I love, or do I follow the example of those who have the desire and strength to forgive?
12. Do I ask for accountability for my words and actions or do I do whatever I want to do because I don’t care about what other people think?
13. Do I continue to want to improve my marriage by reading books, attending seminars, listening to CD’s, mentoring with other couples, or do I just hope that the same-o-same-o somehow works out?
14. Do I put all my trust for security and peace of mind in my retirement plan, investments and the government system, or do I trust that God has my best interest in mind and offers me a kind of peace that money can’t buy?
15. How do I want my family and friends to remember me? As I guy who meant well, but didn’t sacrificially invests his whole heart into their lives? Or a dad, son, husband, brother, grandpa, Christian, friend who loved them well and pointed them toward the source of that love – God?