By Joan Endicott
Dear Young at Heart, this is the third in the“ I Get To!”® series with GiGi & Joy. I pray you personally enjoy these, while also sharing these stories and life lessons with the little ones you love, as well. May it connect with all ages, offering moments of compassionate conversations that serve to ground every heart, regardless of age, in the timeless truths of God’s Word. – Joan
The afternoon sun filtered through the branches of the old juniper tree, casting lacy shadows across the soft grass. The swing swayed in a slow rhythm as GiGi and Joy sat nestled together, Princess the pup sprawled comfortably at their feet.
“You’ve sure been quiet today. You doin’ okay, my love?” GiGi asked, gently brushing strands of hair behind her ear.
Joy let out a long sigh and asked her question quietly, as if setting it down carefully between them. “GiGi…do you ever wish you could…change people?”
GiGi hugged her tighter. “That sounds like a heavy thing to carry,” she said softly. Joy nodded, exhaling the way you do when you no longer feel alone while wondering. “I’m really glad you asked me—and yes, I’ve wished that before, too,” GiGi added. And for a few moments, to be seen and heard was enough.
Joy looked down. “It’s just…sometimes people say things that hurt. Or they leave others out. And I don’t understand why.” She shrugged. “I think if they knew how it felt, they wouldn’t do that.” Her eyes filled. “I don’t like watching people hurt each other. It makes me wish I could fix it.”
GiGi nodded slowly, her eyes smiled. “That tells me something special about you,” she said. “You notice when people hurt. You care when things feel unfair. And you don’t like seeing anyone left out.” Joy looked up, feeling comforted. GiGi squeezed her hand. “Wanting to help fix things comes from loving deeply. It comes from a heart that wants the world to be kinder than it sometimes is.”
GiGi sat quietly for a moment, choosing her words with care. “There was a time,” she said softly, “when I thought loving people meant I needed to help carry the things they were feeling…and help fix things that felt broken.” Joy listened closely. “I’m so grateful the Lord has taught me that those things are not ours to fix. Each decides for themselves and only God can help them change.
“We get to look to Jesus’ example—choosing to be loving and kind even when life feels hard and heavy.” GiGi patted her hand. “That choice doesn’t change what’s outside of us, but it changes what’s inside.”
GiGi quietly, remembered. “You know, one day many years ago,” she said softly, “at a time when life felt sad and heavy to me, I was lying in bed wishing I didn’t have to get up…wishing I didn’t have to do all the things waiting for me that day.” She paused. “Then God gave me one of the most wonderful gifts of my life. I call it my gift—wrapped in struggle paper.
“I pictured my dear friend who was also lying in her bed, but hers was in the hospital—and she couldn’t get up. She couldn’t do anything—for herself or those she loved.” GiGi’s voice cracked as tears came. “My heart broke for her…while I also knew that if she could do any of those things I was just complaining about, she would do it ALL with joy and gratitude.
“That’s when I asked God to help me never say that I have to do anything ever again.” She looked at Joy with quiet certainty. “That’s when I understood—nothing in my life is a burden, or a have to.” She whispered, “It’s a beautiful blessing that ‘I Get To!’®”
Joy lit up, “That’s your favorite saying—and your book!”
They burst out laughing. “Yes, it is, my dear—and now you know why!”
****
Walking over to water the pretty purple petunias in Grandma Jo’s old rusty wheelbarrow, GiGi smiled. “Of course this reminds me of our dear Teagan.”
Joy looked up with a huge grin. “He’s one of our favorite people, isn’t he, GiGi?”
“Yes, he sure is!” she agreed with a wink. “He’s also one of our best examples of someone who chooses to look at life through that “I Get To!”® gratitude lens, even when life feels hard.” GiGi smiled thinking about his example. “Many things that come easily for us, Teagan can’t do. Even the things he can do take him so much more time.
“Whenever he struggles to be grateful, he told me, ‘I remember that I am loved by God and nothing in my life is an accident…That God made me unique and wonderful (Psalm 139). I am made for a purpose—even if I don’t necessarily know what that is. No matter how badly I feel about myself (or my situation), I know that someone has it worse.’
“Teagan doesn’t simply say those things, he lives them! I’ve known him for many years, and I’ve watched closely how he lives. Even when times are hard, still, he notices and is grateful for the good things. He loves Jesus and others. He enjoys life and laughs easily. He is kind and compassionate. He is present and celebrates life with others—even the smallest moments. He is grateful for what he can do—even if it’s difficult.” GiGi turned back to Joy. “Teagan proves that gratitude isn’t about having an easy life; it’s about our power to choose gratitude, even when—and especially when—life feels hard or heavy.”
Joy let it settle. “I guess I’ve been thinking more about what others say or do instead of what God says.”
“Oh, I know how easy that is to do, too, sweetheart. Words have weight. We’re always deciding whose words have the most weight in our heart. God’s Word tells us that the most important thing is to ‘Love the Lord our God with all our heart…and love our neighbors as ourselves.’ ”
GiGi put the tips of her thumbs and tips of her forefingers together making a triangle, wiggling her fingertips. “If we love God and put Him first, above anything and everything else, He gives us the power to love ourselves exactly as He made us, and to love others as He made them.”
Joy looked down, “I want to do that, but…some people are mean…”
“Yes, it’s very hard—in fact, I think it’s not possible,” GiGi said.
Joy looked very confused. “Wait, it’s not possible?”
“Well, not by ourselves. That’s why when we love God first, He helps us do the rest. I remember something that happened to Teagan when he was in school. Someone didn’t want to take the time to get to know him and wasn’t very kind to him. Teagan’s reply? ‘Whelp, it’s their loss!’ and he laughed about it. What a great example! He was right—it was their loss!”
GiGi smiled. “Megan, another friend of mine, learned something important when she was little,” she said. “One day at school, a girl was mean to her and said, ‘I don’t like you!’ ” GiGi paused. “Megan didn’t argue or get upset. She just smiled and said, ‘That’s okay! I like me!’ ”
Joy laughed. “I love that—I want to do that, too!”
GiGi chuckled. “Me, too,” she said. “Megan knew what God says about her, and she believed Him. When we agree with God about who we are, we can stop worrying about what others think.”
“And we get to love who we are because God put huge worth in each of us,” Joy beamed.
“Exactly!” GiGi giving a high-five. “Remembering that one thing changes how we see everything, doesn’t it, Joy?”
“And looking through the ‘I Get To!’® Attitude lens changes how we see everything, too!” Joy jumped up and threw her hands up, celebrating as Princess pranced around her.
“Yes, it sure does!” GiGi joined her, clapping along. Laughing, they fell on the grass. “I’m glad it’s simple to start practicing it, too,” GiGi continued. “We start by noticing.
“Tell me about your day. What are some things you were able to do today?”
Joy thought for a moment. “Well…I got out of bed. I took a shower. I ate breakfast. I went to school. I played at recess. I read with my class. I laughed with my friends. I came home and did my homework. And then I came to see you…and Princess.”
They both giggled as Princess’s ears perked up and she flopped onto her back, ready for a good belly rub.
“Now, my love,” GiGi said slowly, “just imagine not being able to do any of that.”
Joy thought for a while and looked down at her hands, then wrapped her arms around herself. Closing her eyes, she gave herself a warm hug. “Wow… that feels so different,” she said. “I didn’t think about those things as special before. But they are.” She paused, her voice softer now. “I really do get to.”
“Isn’t it wonderful?” GiGi encouraged. “It’s a simple shift that helps you see the good life you already have.”
And in that moment, gratitude found its way in—without being forced, without being rushed—simply noticed.
GiGi stroked Joy’s soft hair. “When days feel hard,” she said gently, “gratitude is God’s gift that helps our hearts find the beautiful things.” Joy leaned in closer, and together they let the quiet settle.
It’s a simple shift. A quiet noticing. And sometimes, that’s all it takes to realize…“I Get To!”®
Connection questions: 1. What was your favorite part of the story? 2. What do you love about that part? 3. Would you like to do that too? 4. When you look through your gratitude lens, what do you see? What are the some things on your “I Get To!”® list?
Read more about Teagan’s story in Chapter 12 when you get your FREE copy of Joan’s “I Get To!”® book at www.JoanEndicott.com. Watch Joan’s encouraging words in her short videos on social media. Joan is an Award-Winning Keynote Speaker, Author and Coach whose coaching has reached over 30 countries.
