Grief...
The reality of grief rests there on the pliable places of my heart.
Not for myself specifically...
Yet I have known it.
But for those whose grief is fresh...
And for those who are remembering...
They say that time heals, and it does, but the depth of pain lingers...
The depth of loss...
The depth of emptiness...
Loss hurts.
And no matter what one does & no matter how much one prepares...
The sting of death rivets us to the core.
And changes our lives for the remainder of our time here on earth.
Yet I always remind myself that in the reality of death...
There is hope in Life.
In the reality of loss...
There is hope in gaining something new.
In the reality of brokenness...
There is hope in the Healer.
In the reality of heartache...
There is hope in taking the hand of another hurting heart...
And saying, "Can I walk with you?"
And she's right.
Thankfully, there's One who doesn't.
As I walked around the perimeter of mine & Kyle's bed this morning...
Tightening the sheets...
Arranging the pillows...
Straightening the quilt..
Folding the blanket that rests at the foot...
Praying for ones whose pain is inexplicably deep...
And others who are remembering tragic events of years past...
I interceded.
In my finite mind...
In my human understanding...
In my being one person...
I can't relate to where they are...
Or what they are thinking...
Or how they are feeling...
Or the avenues they are looking to for healing...
No one can.
But One.
Only One knows the specifics...
The specific event...
The specific situation...
The specific hurt...
The specific pain...
Only One.
And for that, I am thankful.
I can't heal their wounds.
I can't remove the grief.
I can't fix what is broken.
I have no magic words.
But God in His sovereignty sees it all...
Every.
Last.
Detail.
And I am thankful.
I can walk beside them.
I can make mental notes to remember.
I can hold them when they seek my embrace.
Yet, only One is the Mender of the broken.
♥So as I think back to a best friend who stood at the bedside of her mom...watching...waiting...
♥And a sister & niece who counted the breaths of a father-in-law/grandpa & watched them diminish...
♥And that same family hold a mom/grandma as she departed this life...
♥And a couple we love more than life deliver a lifeless, breathless, perfect infant into this world...
♥And a wife whisper last words into the ear of her soul-mate...
In physical form, we were there...
But our understanding pales in the face of their pain.
A pain that still lingers within the depths of their being.
And as I think of ones trying to find footing in what seems like sinking sand...
Their situation unique to all others...
And as my mind rests on a family remembering the events of this day some years ago...
Recalling events second-by-second...minute-by-minute...hour-by-hour...
And as I consider a son preparing...for the "letting go"...
Knowing it's time, yet not ready for "good-bye"...
God reminds me that only He...
Only He, in His sovereignty, can see their hearts...
Feel their grief...
Understand their gut-wrenching pangs...
Only He knows the reality of their loss...
He's the only One who was there prior to...
In the midst of...
For the remainder...
God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
~Psalm 46:1~
