Families

I spent hours with a family yesterday.
During one of the hardest times in life. The matriarch of the family had a catastrophic event - her heart stopped twice at the retirement center where she lives. She was taken by ambulance to the hospital and slowly the family came and made the hard decisions that must be made at a time like this.

Unfortunately her children live other places than Columbus. With daughters in Oregon and a son in northwest Ohio, this is not easy. however, I watched how they communicated through cell phones and shared information and feelings and respected one another enough to wait for each child and grandchild to say goodbye.

These are the times that reveal our character as individuals and as families. I could only think that their mother and grandmother would have been pleased as they expressed their love for her and their consideration of one another.

There is more yet to come in these difficult and yet holy times that test us.
It is often unstated but I bear witness to the presence and the strength of god's presence during this time.
God is here in the pain and the waiting and the decisions.
God is here as we silently sit with a loved one as their life is ending.
God is here as we are family together.