I feel fortunate that my parents made a point of taking me and my brother to visit historical sites and teaching us the events that took place there. I have been to Fort Sumter, The Alamo, the Juliet Low House (founder of the Girls Scouts), walked the homestead where the movie “The North and South” was filmed, slept on an air craft carrier, watched a Houston Oilers game in the stadium, explored NASA’s Space Museum and seen a space shuttle take off from the ground in Florida, explored the Grand Canyon, and so much more.

I remember the election of Presidents over the years and the release of hostages during Carter’s term. I watched the space shuttle Challenger explode from my 5th grade science class, remember the shooting of Ronald Reagan, the wedding of Princess Diana to Prince Charles, The Star Wars Movies, the end of the Cold War, 9-11…

There is personal history, like the birth of my brother, the first day of school, my baptism, meeting my husband, getting married, becoming a mom, hearing God’s voice…

“Historical Events” and “Milestone Events” are big, life altering, and many times they are challenging. I think that what often makes them so important is not the events themselves but how people respond to them. Whether individuals or nations, it is all the days in between that matter more: all the “normal” days that slowly pass us by, when our beliefs are being formed, our character is being shaped, and we are becoming. Historical events stand out because of their extraordinary ability to test our mettle and reveal what we are made of. But when the excitement of the good, the bad, and the unexpected fades, we go back to the ordinary; and, hopefully we approach it with intentionality because now we know where we have done well and where we need to grow.

Photos are courtesy of Pixabay and are being reshared from past posts.