After two years on the road, we are finally getting to visit my Grandmother.
We only have two weeks here, so we have to treasure it. But, like with all plans, things change. Upon arrival, we found out two uncles died. One uncle was 88 and died of cancer, while the other was only 53 and his death was quite a surprise.
(This post was written before we rented the cabin)
Our happy vacation turned into a time of mourning and bonding. I brought my grandmother to the viewing of Eugene. The family was sad, but not overly distraught. Eugene was old and ready to be with the Lord. Of course, he left a huge farm with lots of items of value on it. I am hoping greed doesn't divide the family. If everyone will do what is fair and right, things will be fine....
Uncle Orville died too young. He has four children, all adults, but still too young to be without a father. When we got word of his death, we dropped everything. I told my husband that our vacation was over. Our only job was to help the family through this hard time.
You see, I lost my dad when he was 53 also. It was one of the hardest things in my life.
We made a huge salad and tons of enchiladas. I bought paper plates, silverware and cups for them. We brought them to their house. As I walked in, my cousin Sara rushed to me and collapsed in my arms. I'll never forget the sobbing and her body shaking with sadness. This was her daddy that died. Her heart was crushed. I led her to a bedroom and rocked her in my arms. We cried together for a while.
We didn't stay long, in fact, I didn't let the kids come inside. When someone loses a loved one so tragically, it is not time to visit or make it into a family reunion. I held her and comforted her until she was ok, then we left.
Two funerals were not what we wanted to do on our vacation up north. Yet, it is times like this that makes us question our motives for our traveling full time. Yes, we travel to see great sites, spend time as a family, have fun....but are we willing to sacrifice our own plans to help another in need.
We gave up three days of our vacation to help our family. I told my kids, "Are we here for us, or for God."
We helped clean up after the funeral, which took up most of our one of only two Saturdays here. It was the right thing to do, though. People must always come first...before sight seeing, playing, or resting.
It is like the good samaritan....when we see a desperate need,
Do we go on with our plans?
Do we keep driving and say the next person will help?
Do we feel that it is not our responsibility and they wouldn't do it for us?
Sometimes, it is the hard choice that is right. I am not saying all of this to act like we are so great and look how holy and wonderful we are. I write this to remind all of us to
take the time
love others
give of ourselves when it is inconvenient or difficult
prioritize
I know we have not always made the right choice, or helped when we should have, but we are trying to be thoughtful to those around us and hopefully spread a light, that is not our own, but Christ's.
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