There is someone in my life who has amazed me recently.
It's my dad.
He lost his beloved wife of 60 years recently.
He spent the last 11 years of their marriage caring for mom after her stroke. She fought, and with his help, became somewhat independent once again about 9 years ago.
But the past year was tough. Mom was hospitalized 4 times. She suffered fractures easily. Daddy was right there. Us kids took turns coming to care for them both.
And in May, we said goodbye to her.
How dad has handled his loss has been astounding.
He devoted his life to her.
He misses her.
But not a conversation goes by where he doesn't tell me how blessed they were.
How lucky he was that she said, "Yes."
That they had 6 great kids.
That we had so many family beach trips with all thirty-some of us getting together.
That they had been able to travel some. To Germany. To Hawaii. To Canada. To Alaska. Each of those trips was to visit one of my siblings or travel with them.
He tells me how much God had blessed them.
He mourns. But not as one without hope.
I had only heard my dad cry three times in all my life. Until mom passed away. Now he cries almost every time I talk with him.
But he assures me he's okay.
Even in his deep loss, it's not all about him. He asks about me, my husband and about each of our kids.
We talk about growing up. About our life as a family. About mom.
She was special. And I'm grateful.
I know mom would want us to go on. Living. Being happy again.
Because her hope was not tied just to this earth. Her hope was in eternity. In God's love. She was at peace. And we are, too. We miss her. But one day...
I'm humbled by my parents. Their deep faith has gotten them through some tough times. And now, to hear my dad express his gratefulness, even in the most difficult thing he's ever faced, is humbling. His faith in God is giving strength to those of us in the family.
He has suffered a great loss with grace. God's grace.
And for that, I am thankful and blessed.
May you see God's hand working in your life today.
My mom would be the first to tell you how good God is.....
Monday's Musings - Seasons of Life Pt. 2
In my last Monday's Musings post, I wrote about the Seasons of Life. While there is an overall understanding of the seasons of life with respect to age, I think that looking at seasons in life that has nothing to do with age is particularly useful.
For as you already know, we can go through different seasons over and over in life.
Winter seems to happen off and on for most of us. It can feel tiresome, dreary and weary. Winter is when we are in a season of hardship or struggle. Life can appear bleak. Tiring. We may have a huge struggle or maybe life has just worn us down. Joy may be harder to find. Sometimes, we just want to give up.
But here's the thing about winter. It does end.
And it's always followed by spring. Every time.
For you see, while we may think God has given us more than we can bear, he knows what's best.
Can we really go through life with no pain or suffering? No heartache? No physical issues? No health issues?
If we stop and think about it, the answer is "no".
But we want a life free of pain. At least I do.
God never promised us a perfect life.
But he did promise to be with us, during the winters of our lives.
And at some point, if we're looking for it, we'll see the color of life seeping into our black and white lives.
We'll see the fog lifting and the sun beginning to shine through.
We can start to notice the flowers beginning to bloom, even with the barren trees in full view.
This is when God releases us from the hardship and gives us hope that life moves on. That we will have a time of rest.
It's a wonderful time.
It doesn't mean we'll never struggle again. It just means God is faithfully walking with us. And that he sees fit to give us a breather.
To put what we learned in the winter into practice in our everyday lives.
To enjoy the sun. And the bright flowers. And the beautiful blue sky.
Recently, God gave us a huge breather. While my father-in-law is still terminal, he's surprised all the doctors and hospice nurses and is getting stronger! He's outlived their predictions by three months so far and counting! He even had to be re-evaluated to stay in the hospice program!
We know the end is still coming, but what a gift! More time to enjoy his company and hear about what he's thankful for. How he appreciates how God has blessed him.
I can say I'm thankful for the breather.
How about you? What season of life are you in? What have you learned from it that you can share with others?
I'd love to hear from you!
And if you have a post somewhere on the topic you'd like me to read, please leave it below and I'll stop by!
He lost his beloved wife of 60 years recently.
That they had 6 great kids. 
Because her hope was not tied just to this earth. Her hope was in eternity. In God's love. She was at peace. And we are, too. We miss her. But one day...
