Life and death are the two things that I deem "surreal". The feelings I get during these two occasions - the love for people I am or am not familiar with... The sense of urgency behind their stories, and the overwhelming thoughts of "what-if". What if I were in their shoes: celebrating an additional headcount, or mourning the loss of a loved one...
- A friend from work and his wife were recently blessed with new babies. Yes, babies. I'm biased... I LOVE multiples. These people were blessed with Triplets! Their lives are overflowing with joy and I read her blog frequently to see what new milestones their family has approached... From the posts about giving birth to her three beautiful healthy babies, to the eagerness she and her husband feel while waiting for the first poop... and soon after, their ride home from the hospital.
- Another friend was told it was going to be challenging to have children... She and her husband were trying to get pregnant for a while, when one day she came to me and said "I'm pregnant!" And soon after, I got a text message from her saying "TWINS!!" Again.. overflowing emotion and excitement! Their beautiful twin girls are now 6.5 months old and just as beautiful as their mama.
(I seem to know a lot of people that have multiples... that's not the point. It's just an interesting coincidence. Having one baby at a time is pretty cool too!)
Along with these fantastic announcements, this week has proven to be exceptionally challenging for a couple of families...
- I was getting an oil change on my way home from Wisconsin on Monday. We (my family and I) have developed a pretty good relationship with the people that manage this place (who happen to be brother and sister). I asked the million dollar question "How are you doing?" and got sad eyes from the two of them. They then proceeded to tell me about a horrible house fire the weekend prior that left their sister-in-law severely burned and killed their 19-year-old nephew. The loss has undoubtedly crippled the family. The manager at Applebee's had heard the story and asked if he could hold a fundraiser to assist with the financial burden that comes with losing a loved one. What a fantastic thing for them to offer to alleviate some of their stresses!
(for those of you that are local and/or interested in contributing to the fund raiser at the local Applebee's for his funeral, please let me know...)
- Lastly, a girlfriend of mine has been posting updates on "baby Owen" on her Facebook. Owen is one of three babies (yes, another set of triplets) that her friends was blessed with around 7 months ago. Baby Owen "grew his wings" Wednesday evening after losing consciousness 4 days prior. He had rolled over on his belly and was not able to roll back. After 4 days, their family is searching for peace at the loss of their baby (her blog can be found [here]). Mel (Owen's mom) has turned in the direction of faith and has now begun the slow process of recovery from such a traumatic experience... Not only does she have the support from her family, but from hundreds of people that have heard her story.
I don't know some of these families exceptionally well but I feel the joys and sadness as they share their stories. Times like these are pleasant, solemn, prominent reminders of the blessing held in every breath...
My reminder to all of you tonight is to forgive and forget, live in the moment, be grateful, be gracious and lastly, don't count the wrongs that are inflicted on you... instead, count the blessings you've received in exchange.
Have a fantastic, relaxing long weekend, and thank you for taking the time to visit!
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