the valley of your heart,

God gave us families so that we wouldn’t be born on our own. So that our hearts could be connected to other hearts from the moment we became a part of earth. So that despite whichever path our life directs, family remains the undercurrent of our beings.

As I scroll through old family photos and my favorite travel pictures, I acknowledge God’s placement here in the Eubanks household. I was born in a family of strength. My grandparents on both sides have worked hard to achieve beautiful lives. Not to neglect God’s direction in their journeys, of course. When I think of my Grandma and Pa, my mother’s parents, I think of working with my hands. My Pa is a great cook. I wish I could have inherited that from him, but unfortunately I did not. Fortunately, I think I did gain a small speck of my Grandma’s heart. Her heart shines for God’s will in her community, in her people. I recognize that my friendliness comes from her whenever I visit their small farm. Even though I’m afraid of growing older (a sort of Peter Pan syndrome), I can see that my grandparents live their lives fully, mostly by loving fully. They love through food, through sweet words, through coming to my singing performances, through remaining the same reliable grandparents I’ve loved for sixteen years.

I am so blessed to have another set of grandparents, especially one that lives so close by. I get to see my grandparents almost every Sunday at church. They take us out to lunch and my grandmother constantly calls asking if she can take me out to a play or shopping. I know so many young people whose grandparents can’t visit them constantly or don’t care to invest time in their grandchildren, but mine do! Wow. What inspires me greatly about Meme and Papa is what they’ve given and taken from the world. My dad’s parents have visited every continent, including Antarctica, and haven’t stopped trekking yet. All their travels are displayed in their home on a large (slightly outdated) world map. Different colored pins mark so many of their memories together, and I look forward to the time when I’ll get to see God’s bounty with the one I love.

Simply enough, my sisters are strong. Sammi and Caroline have already led impressive lives, from moving to beautiful university locations to backpacking across the world. First off, Caroline is so bold. She surprises me more and more. Right now, she’s in the midst of (hopefully!) getting a job with Busabout, a British tour group for young people. I brag about that all the time, saying that my sister was in London last weekend and that she’s going to Australia for a few weeks in the spring. How many people can say that? Caroline knows what she wants—a bite from every corner of the world—and I believe she’ll be satisfied when looking back upon her life. Right now, she works several jobs in addition to cultivating a witty travel blog. I have no doubt that she’ll be one of those writers whose work you adore and whose life you envy even more. And Sammi. I miss Sammi. She’s in North Carolina studying at a beautiful school in the mountains. She hikes, climbs, swims, kick boxes, runs, and does pretty much every physical activity I wish I could do. She has a small frame, a loud mouth, and a big heart, which is why everybody loves her. Her independence and devotion to Christ has led me to a life with Jesus, too. She’s my main spiritual leader, even if I rarely get to talk about God with her. I’m so excited for Sammi’s life. She’ll probably end up helping people in a way that encompasses all her passions. She’ll see God’s green earth, delineate her eloquent thoughts on it, and return home to tell her tales. But no matter what Sammi plans to do, I know she’ll ultimately follow the footsteps God has set for her. I admire that.

All this to say that I have great parents. My dad is the hardest working man you’ll ever meet who happens to have an equal dose of humility. He loves his family more than anything and doesn’t hesitate to say so. He was born and raised in my hometown, loves his mama, and is proud of where he is from. I love his heart, his love, his intimidating eyebrows, his mad fishing skills. In fact, he placed 6^th in a state bass fishing tournament today. Go Joe! My mama and I are way too alike, which is a good thing. We both are emotional roller coasters who love children. She’s a kindergarten teacher; so needless to say, she’s got patience and kindness, only a few of the fruits of the spirit she claims. She loves opening worlds of possibilities to her children, never allowing constraints of “the real world” smother us. Her mantra to her daughters has always been, “you can do whatever you want.” Thanks Mom.

So that’s a little taste of my family. This is the product of a heart-filled rant, so I’d love it if you got a better picture of who the Eubanks clan is from other sources, such as Sammi’s blog, http://samsmountaintopmusings.blogspot.com/, or Caroline’s, http://www.carolineinthecityblog.com/. But anyway, I pray you take pride in your family and show it in love, something I’m praying for the ability to do. Please take a snapshot of your family, and "always remember there is nothing worth sharing like the love that let us share our name."