Sometimes death can be viewed as a double tragedy. The first tragedy being the actual loss of a loved one. And the second is the fact that surviving friends and family will typically gather to share loving memories and express their deepest sentiments about the person, when the person is no longer around to hear it. I find that kind of sad. Well, in the past month I’ve had the privilege of hearing how much I mean to so many people, and I didn’t even have to die.
Have I known that I was loved? Of course. Have I felt the love of friends and family? Certainly. But, have I understood the depth of this love? I didn’t until now.
Saying good bye to my co-workers at Central Vacuum Stores was tough. I’ve worked there for 7 years and to say that my co-workers are truly like brothers and sisters is an understatement. These folks didn’t just tell me they would miss me on my last day, they spent weeks prior to my departure pouring love into me. That’s the Lord. Because only the Lord and my closest friend knows that my “Love Language” is Words of Affirmation. (If you haven’t read Gary Chapman’s book The Five Love Languages you really should, it’s eye opening.) My family has also been sharing how proud they are of this endeavor I’m about to embark on. Proud? Of me? Really?
It’s strange because when you are in the center of what I call the “World Race Preparation Hurricane” you don’t feel like you’re doing anything out of the ordinary. There are what seem like a zillion things to do to prepare, so you spend every day getting a small list of things accomplished. So, I at least have not really had the time to think that what I’m doing in next year is really anything special. The Lord called me. I said, “Me, really? Ok.” And, that’s that. =)
So, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has shared their love with me in these last couple of months. You make it easy to go but hard to leave. I love you all very much.
Stay tuned to my next blog…I’m going to tackle PACKING! Fun, fun!
No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Hebrews 12:11
