I’ve been on Facebook for several years now, and I have a lot of folks on my friend list. Some of you are family. Some are school friends, some are friends from our former churches, and some of you are friends of my kids (now my friend, as well). A whole lot of you are folks I’ve never met face to face, but I still consider you my friends. Heck, I’ve even adopted some of you! You laugh at my silliness, you comment on my pictures, and you play these dumb Facebook games with me. This year has been particularly rough for my family. In the first seven months of 2014, my husband and I have experienced the deaths of our mothers. This sent us reeling, and in some ways we still haven’t gotten our heads cleared of it all. Two weeks ago, our dog General was struck by a car and died a while later at the vet’s office. Our house is quiet and fairly lonely without General. This is a new grief for me. I’m not normally an animal person, but I loved that General. He was a sweet dog, and actually a perfect pet. My sincere thanks to all who have encouraged us through these life-altering events with your words of love and support, as well as your gifts. I am not the same person I was on January 1, 2014, and I’m waiting to see where God is going to take me through all of this. I’m also fully aware that I am not the only one who has suffered challenges this year. Many of you have also had a rough year. Old schoolmates are in the season of life where you are losing, or have lost, your parents. Or you are having to make decisions for your parents that they used to make for you. My friends have lost spouses—a mighty grief almost too heavy to hold. Some of you are dealing with special-needs children and struggling to help them find the way to accomplish as much as is possible in their lives. Others have lost their beloved pets, as well. Many are struggling to make ends meet in this very uncertain economy. And the list goes on. I just want to say thank you. You are all very kind, and I’m glad you are my friends. I only hope I have been half the encouragement to you as you have been to me.
Posted on: Wed, 23 Jul 2014 14:28:53 +0000