“The gift of experience is priceless.”

A thought by Mark Batterson, Richard Foth, and Susanna Foth Aughtmon (2015-04-28) from their book, A Trip around the Sun: Turning Your Everyday Life into the Adventure ofa Lifetime (p. 29). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

Dick continued this thought by saying, “Ruth and I decided early on in our marriage that if we had to choose between giving our kids experiences or things, we would give them experiences. They could always get things. One of the ways we did that was by traveling. We didn’t let modest salaries stop us. We packed food and games and stopped now and again just to play. After all, experiences connected to play are so often how we learn. I didn’t intellectually know that at the time, but I learned it later and I know it’s true. It’s at the heart of who we are as human beings.”

Later he said, “Our experiences shape the way we think, the way we interact with each other, and the way we live. They add richness and depth and meaning to our days. You can give your children toys today that quickly end up in tomorrow’s trash. Or you can deliver a living, breathing experience that shapes their souls, enriches their lives, and makes their world and yours a doorway to tomorrow. A day spent exploring the woods behind your house, a weekend sharing stories and homemade breakfasts with grandparents, or an out-of-town vacation spent visiting your college roommate’s family can impact them for the rest of their lives.”

My son, Brett is in Law School and he is right now on a short break. Law School means that he doesn’t have a lot of time doing things with his wife and two daughters but he is using this time off having fun with them. They love to play.

Stef, our daughter and her husband and daughter were in town last weekend from Las Vegas. All nine of us headed to Disneyland on Friday. We all have annual passes to the happiest place on earth. Every time we go I tell about the day that my father took my mom, my sister and me to Disneyland. It had just opened and we were there. I love telling everyone that I got to see Zorro. He was there with Sargent Garcia. That was almost 60 years ago but I remember it like it was today and my kids are tired of me telling them about it. But it is a part of the experiences that make me who I am.

I hope you have some play planned for this weekend. Listen when I am put into my grave and my family will never see me again physically what they will have is the memories of the experiences that we had together. Don’t waist the time that God has given you.

So what are you going to do this weekend?

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