Carmela Snelbaker

Author of "Thank You For Your Service, Sheep!"
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  • Tag: grandchildren

    • In The Truest Beauty Of Sharing Of Self You Each Will Get Something More Beautiful Than Words…The Warmest Blanket Of Love and Contentment :)

      Posted at 9:52 AM by carmelasnelbaker
      Aug 14th

      Because I am attempting to share my home with exchange students from other countries, I was asked to put together a home and family profile. In putting words to and explaining the home I live in I found it was impossible to separate the description of the house from the beauty and depth of my parents Love for each other as well as my sister and I.

      I am truly grateful for their Love for us and the manner in which they shared there immense wisdom of Life and Love. Love and Life can be so overwhelmingly complicated that it may take us years to actually completely understand and absorb the gifts it places before us.

      I live in the home that my father built before getting married to my mother. They were married in front of the fireplace within the home and lived here their entire lives.

      This is the home I grew up in. I treasure the many beautiful memories my family built here and the fact that I can continue sharing life’s journey and build more positive memories and wisdom with my children, grandchildren and others as well.

      My father was a custom home builder as well as a furniture maker. Many items within the home were made by my father’s hands. My mother also used her talents and love to make beautiful things that filled the home with details, beauty and proof of her longing to provide not only a loving environment but a place filled with the warmth of Love.

      Like a warm blanket that someone wraps you in when you are cold and afraid, this is what my parents have built and left for me. I long to continue to share that level of Love with others as I continue to live here and share their home with my grown children, grandchildren and with others.

      who you get to share it with

      Our family has a very deep understanding of how precious each day of life is. Our family has lived through the most difficult challenge anyone should ever have to endure. My beautiful Grandson Wyatt was diagnosed with Mitochondrial disease and lived with and died from the disease in 2013.

      He was 11 years old when he joined Jesus in Heaven. He taught us great beauty that is impossible to put words to. He continues each day to send us wisdom from heaven that we share with others by keeping his story and life active in our hearts daily.

      Love for a grandchild does not stop when they become an Angel in Heaven, it multiplies by a thousand and we actively use it by extending his Love to others. By doing this we feel him with us each day and God wraps us in that warm blanket of Love to help us continue our journey on life without him.

      Inspirational_Quote

      I warms my heart knowing that our Angels in Heaven were able to share such great Wisdom and Love with us while we were graced with the beauty of their presence here on earth with us.

      Today I read a beautiful post from a fellow blogger who gracefully shared her son Jacobs story and journey. Each time we share our loved ones story is another chance their soul has to touch the earth with their wisdom.  I am truly grateful for the wisdom of each treasured soul I meet.

      Below is a portion of a poem from the Wieckling Blog that I felt the need to share. You can read Jacob’s families post as well as the complete poem by clicking on the link above.

      “I fancied that I heard them say, “Dear Lord, Thy will be done!
      For all the joy Thy child shall bring, the risk of grief we run.
      We’ll shelter him with tenderness, we’ll love him while we may,
      And for the happiness we’ve known, forever grateful stay;
      But should the angels call for him much sooner than we’ve planned,
      We’ll brave the bitter grief that comes and try to understand!”

      Thank you Mom, Dad, Wyatt and Jacob for continuing to share your wisdom with others here on earth.

      With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love,  Carmela

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      Posted in Meditative Writings | Tagged #blog4peace, #complicated, B4Peace, beauty, Carmela Snelbaker, children, Christianity, courage, daily post challenge, daily prompt, divine guidance, Divine Love, DPchallenge, emotions, family, God, grandchildren, gratitude, hope, inspiration, joy, kindness, love, Mental health, peace, positivity, Prayer, respect, wisdom
    • I’ll Be Brave

      Posted at 9:47 AM by carmelasnelbaker
      May 21st

      bravery_motivational_by_serpent1212-d3er0vq

      Brave…… Spunky, Strong, Unafraid, Undaunted, Lionhearted, Herolike, Indomitable, Spirited, these are synonyms for the word BRAVE.

      How does one become brave? Is it something that we actually contemplate and then act upon? This makes me think of my beautiful grandson Wyatt who was meeting the challenge of living with Mitochondrial Disease. He would often state before having to endure one of the many painful pokes or procedures required for that day “I’ll be brave”.

      It is my belief that Bravery comes from within. It is also my Belief that we obtain it from Above. In my opinion as human beings we have limited abilities, knowledge and strength. When we rely on only what our human mind can plan for us we limit ourselves to small minded solutions.

      By reaching outside of ourselves and inviting in Divine Solutions, Bravery will come forth from within.

      This doesn’t mean we will function as the Incredible Hulk with a visible strength busting out of our clothing and a relentless hardhearted attitude. Boasting and singing our theme song and successes.

      You may not know, but as we pray for Divine Support to fill our hearts and Guide us through difficult times, The Divine Spirit within your heart fills you with an endless wealth of Patience, Peace, Joy, Wisdom and Love.

      True Bravery is not boastful and loudly visible it is more noticeable as a beautiful, quiet, gentle, nonthreatening calm, peace and comfort that we are able to function with through whatever daily life sends our way. A Brave person filled with the Divine Spirit is someone you want to draw near to, someone who you can tangibly feel their strength and wisdom. Someone you want to be with and get to know and share their secrets from within.

      It does not mean though that we will be void of emotions. Even the toughest and bravest individuals even though they live with the assurance that they will have adequate courage to survive the challenges life sometimes deals us will experience sadness and tears from the life struggles we and others witness here on earth.

      Pray for those in need, that they may be filled with the Strength and Peace for Above. Pray that the many humans struggling in “human survival mode” reach out for Divine Wisdom, open their hearts to “Be Brave” (as Wyatt so perfectly and simply said it.)

      With Respect, Hope, Joy and Love,  Carmela

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      Posted in Meditative Writings | Tagged #blog4peace, B4Peace, be brave, beauty, bravery, Carmela Snelbaker, challenges, Child, Christianity, compassion, courage, daily post challenge, dignity, divine guidance, DPchallenge, family, God, grandchildren, gratitude, hope, hospice, inspiration, joy, kindness, love, Mental health, peace, positivity, Prayer, respect, spirit, Unconditional love, wisdom
    • Daily Loving Encounters

      Posted at 4:33 PM by carmelasnelbaker
      Mar 26th

                               

      Jesus, Others, You

      Jesus, Others, You

      The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain…….Kahlil Gibran

      As a grandmother who has lost a grandson I am finding the thought of moving beyond the brokenness unimaginable at times. Someone made a comment to me that was not in relation to losing a grandchild in death however, it was about being a grandparent who lives “a thousand miles away” from their grandchild and longing to live closer. He said, “My solution (temporary, until I can join them) is to love everyone I encounter with the love my Savior gave to me. That isn’t such a bad alternative, after all”.
      This reminded me of a situation the other day that I experienced with a child about the same age of my grandson. As I was working on a project in a store, one isle away from me (entertaining himself for quite some time alone) a young boy was playing with plastic dinosaurs. He was very contently acting out noises and actions as if he was putting on a well rehearsed play. I smiled at him and complimented him on his knowledge about the dinosaurs. This simple friendly comment led to a quite long interaction with the youngster as he very eagerly shared more of his knowledge, imitations and stories of the books he read on the subject of dinosaurs.
      Once you live through the loss of a child you are forever aware of how precious each and every minute is. Even though this little one appeared to be content in independent play he truly loved the attention and seemed to be in need of kind interaction. After quite awhile his mother finally came looking for him. We said goodbye and I told him that I was sure one day I would be picking up a magazine that will have his photo as a paleontologist and an article on a dinosaur site that he was exploring. His face beamed with a proud smile. When he walked away my heart was once again became consumed with the sadness of missing my grandson, but I pray that by treating the young boy in the store in the same manner and with the same love that I would have treated my grandson it provided a positive memory for him as well as sent a smile and a hug to my grandson in heaven.

      With respect, hope, love and joy,

      Carmela

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      Posted in Meditative Writings | Tagged gifts of love, grandchildren, Grief, Jesus, loss of child, love
    • Our Family’s Safety Ring of Peace

      Posted at 5:28 PM by carmelasnelbaker
      Feb 20th

      Peace-ring00

      Much time has passed since my last post. I seem to have been at a loss for words since the passing of my grandson. Grief is a very strange thing. There is much written about it and many thoroughly explained steps of grief are defined, but there is no quick recovery and each event is so very different.

      Several months before Wyatt’s passing he was very anxious and afraid. He was having bad dreams and medications were causing some hallucinations. I happened to be wearing a thin silver band ring with the word PEACE engraved on it. I gave him my ring, and had a conversation with him.  “This can be your safety ring. Do you remember in church how we share the peace with our neighbor?” Shaking hands and saying “Peace be with you”. “Yes” he answered. “Wear the ring to remind you that you are safe and fold your hands and say, Dear God, Please take all the scary stuff away.” The ring reminds us that we’re not alone comfort is just a prayer away. The ring and prayers brought him comfort.
      We also talked about having a family ring made. He could chose what he wanted it to look like and say. We each would have a ring and wear it so even when we are not together we can wear and feel safe. He discussed the ring with mom dad and sisters and they decided on having a silver band with a small heart stamped on the band and inside the band it would say forever loved. We had them made and wore them. We were comforted by the connection of the ring and the reminder we are not alone. The ring continues to bring me comfort I treasure the daily reminder of my loving grandson’s presence and the comfort of our loving God.

      With respect, hope, joy and love,  Carmela

      blogfamilyring

       

       

       

       

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      Posted in Family Stories, Meditative Writings | Tagged Carmela Snelbaker, challenges, children, Christianity, courage, dignity, family, grandchildren, hope, hospice, joy, loss of child, love, peace
    • A greater education than any textbook or classroom

      Posted at 11:00 PM by carmelasnelbaker
      Aug 4th

      In my travels as a caregiver, I have met many amazingly courageous and beautiful people.  Each person, who I was fortunate enough to meet and take care of, I carry in my heart. They truly have changed my life and taught me many beautiful things. These experiences I believe to be a greater education than any textbook or classroom education that I have had in the past.

      I have a plaque that hangs by my door.  I can’t remember where, or even when, I came across it however, I treasure it. I see it daily, and try to live up to the words.  It goes as follows:

                                           A teacher’s prayer……

                                          One day I would like to teach,

                                           just a few people,

                                           many and beautiful things,

                                           that would help them

                                           when they will one day teach-a few people 

      I have 5 beautiful grandchildren.  One of my grandsons faced many difficult chronic medical issues each day. My heart breaks each day because of the many challenging situations he and other children in similar situations endure. He was an amazingly strong person. The dignity with which he embraced life and all the challenges each day brings, leaves an unforgettable and remarkable imprint on my life.

      Often times the chronic sorrow that one lives with, makes us truly grateful with heightened awareness every moment of every day.  It is because of this awareness of how precious each moment is, that makes me strive to want to teach children from a very young age awareness and gratitude for life.  If we have our eyes opened to gratitude and are taught from a young age to recognize the positive characteristics, and contributions that surround us the outcome will be one of respect for all humankind and animal-kind as well.

      I truly believe that Peace and Respect for all living creation is a very attainable goal. Every person can be a teacher. When you practice respect, you are teaching respect.

      Perhaps the answer to attaining this is as the Teacher’s Prayer states. If each one of us starts with teaching just a few people, many and beautiful things, so they can one day teach a few people. As this continues on and on we can make Gratitude, Hope, Joyfulness, and love abound.

      With respect, hope, joy and love,

      Carmela  

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      Posted in About the Author, Meditative Writings | Tagged B4Peace, beauty, caregiver, Carmela Snelbaker, challenges, courage, dignity, Education, grandchildren, gratitude, Prayer, Sheep!, Teacher, Thank You For Your Service
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