GOING TO TAKE SOME TIME

I’m tired…and worn out. This was the weekend of my brother-in-law, Bob Johnson’s memorial service.

I’ve been overwhelmed with the many caring friends and their acts of kindness. This is a time we struggled with beauty and sadness…smiles with tears…hope and loss…and imagining the recentering process facing my sister, and what’s to come. And all this, along with the exhaustion of engagement and grieving simultaneously.

It was heartwarming to watch the younger cousins witness the power and warmth of family, and feel the safety of being tethered to it. I asked my granddaughters to listen to the room as we visited at the house with friends gathered. “What do you hear?” They seemed puzzled by my question. I told them to listen closer. My youngest of Sarah’s girls said, “Well people are talking and seem happy.” I continued and said, “Yes, Tessa, what you’re hearing are the sounds of deep friendships, and the joy and hope of our faith in Christ. It’s a beautiful sound. Try and keep it tucked away in your memory.

I’m going to remember those sounds, it’s part of my recovery from this weekend. Pam and I stayed with Sig a couple extra days to deal with the immediate residue of it all. But when we get home, we’re going to need a lot of rest and exercise. It’s going to take some time to sort out life without Bob.