“We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps.” Proverbs 16:9 (NLT)
At the end of May we took a few days to go to the mountains of North Carolina. After the year we have had, we figured a trip to step away was what we needed.
Indeed, it was a welcome respite. Sitting on the porch swings and watching the sun dance through the trees and leaves. Seeing the sun on the ripples of the pond and listening to the birds and the frogs. We were removed from all the things pressing down on us. We relaxed. We reconnected with each other. We ate our way through the mountain towns during the day and came back to the cabin at night to sit some more.
It was such a wonderful time. We didn’t want it to end and as we drove toward home, we both said we wished we could have stayed longer. It was that kind of time away.
But, to home we came. Laundry, cleaning and groceries are needing to be done. But, we were relaxed and rested. It was okay.
Upon arriving home, Dale checked his messages to find out that a friend had passed away. A friend we met when we were first married. A little family who lived in an apartment above ours. They too were recently married and had a baby. They were a Coast Guard family, we, a Navy family. Our relationship was an instant one. We were together often. I never wanted children until I held their precious baby girl. She became our god-daughter. We became family.
As happens before computers and smart phones, we lost touch, until a few years ago when we rediscovered each other. Phone calls, messages, texts and we were back in touch. We had meant to go visit, but, life kept intervening. This time, life stopped and we traveled to Mobile to pay our final respects.
We didn’t know what to expect. We hadn’t seen this family in over 40 years. The day after driving to Mobile, we found ourselves at the door of our friend. As the door opened, the years were erased. Tears, laughter, memories, more laughter, more tears, holding hands and hugging. Time was erased.
We visited for a while and left so she could rest. We drove around that afternoon. Mostly lost in our own thoughts and memories. When we stopped to eat, we were once more in a place of quiet.
We sat and ate our fresh seafood, and listened to the seagulls, the sea birds, the fishing vessels. It was what we needed. A respite. A place to gather our thoughts. A time to remember.
We attended the funeral and the gathering afterwards. We returned home. A bit weary, but refreshed also.
Last week I had another surgery for my face. I can’t say I remember much of that, as I slept through it. I know that it was a process to get to the final step, that being not having a hole in the side of my nose.
The past few weeks have been a whirl wind of sorts. It was not what we had planned. But, God. He knew exactly what was going to happen. Would we have planned it all this way? No. But, in our planning we would have missed the little moments we experienced. Moments that made lasting memories for us to cherish.
The lesson I learned the most was when we saw our god-daughter for the first time. I saw her walk into the funeral home. I went over to her and found myself hugging her with my hand on the back of her head, the way I used to hold her as an infant. Tears flowed freely as I hugged her. I told her I had longed to hug her for a very long time, that my heart never forgot her. She hugged me just as tightly back.
As I came home the Lord spoke to me. He reminded me that He created me and held me as I once held our god-daughter. And like the intervening years of not being able to hug her, was like us when we walk away from the Lord. His heart longs to hold us, and keep us near to Him. The joy I felt when I saw and hugged our god-daughter is how our Lord feels when we return to Him and stay close to Him. There is a joy, a peace and a love that surpasses our understanding.
The Refreshing of a Wild Rose 