Streams of Mercy
“You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them.” Desmond Tutu These words are the words of my heart as I return from our yearly family reunion.
Traveling from Nevada, Texas, Indiana, Virginia, North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia and Florida, we gathered to share in a few days, a lifetime together. I once read that families are like branches on a tree – we grow in different directions, yet our roots remain as one. For me, my branch began to grow when a young Kentucky girl rode a bus to Wilmington to wed a young Marine right before he shipped out to join the troops in World War II. Today, my brothers and I find ourselves to be “the older generation.” As we see our children and our children’s children, we marvel at all the ways we are a part of all that has been, all that is, and all that is yet to be.
In our time together I see that many of us are older and more frail and the younger ones are lending a helping hand and keeping a watchful eye. I see the younger generation developing friendships, discovering family ties and forming lasting relationships. I see the babies and toddlers among us and know the family has a future, as they, too, join the journey. Even more special is the joy of knowing there will be three more little ones among us next year!
Riding much of the way with my daughters at the wheel, telling family stories, sharing life lessons and remembering together; exploring Disney Springs and sharing a “stormy” lunch in the Rainforest Café, with a beautiful rainbow above; visiting in the hospitality room, sharing old memories and making new ones; reconnecting, revisiting, renewing, restoring – all are blessings that come from being together. Seeing my great-grandson passed around the family circle as he met them one by one, was a special blessing. It was a joy to visit the girls in their homes, to share in their family life for a day or so, to reconnect with grandchildren and marvel at how they grown, and to see all of them happy and living productive and promising lives. A special joy was having my son and his family come, so that all three of my children and their families were together in the same place at the same time – something that rarely happens any more.
“The love of a family is one of life’s greatest blessings……..
No family is perfect- we may argue and fight, we may even stop talking to each other at times, but in the end, family is family and the love will always be there….
Family, where life begins and love never ends…Family, a gift that lasts forever.”
“For all that that has been, thank you. For all that is to come, yes!” Dag Hammarskjold Giving thanks for family, and for those streams of mercy carrying us through this life into the life to come.
Elizabeth