Last night at Mass, Rick and I witnessed something so beautiful it brought us to tears. A family, diagonal from us, caught our attention. There was a husband, wife and 3 rambunctious little boys. They had jingle bells and could not contain themselves and I speculate there parents were too tired to make it an issue. I dont know how parents do it and I have so much respect and admiration for all who raise children. Which brings me to the next part of the story. Next to the dad was his mother and brother. The brother had his arm around his mom and it appeared he was military probably home on leave. Then we realized their mother had suffered a stroke, Parkinsons, Alzheimers. I;m no doctor but its safe to say she was ailing and not very old. Her family was so good to her but her military son switched roles with her. Anybody who has lived through this knows what Im talking about. That said, he was holding her just as she probably did when he was little. When it came time for communion the tenderness he and the woman serving, was the limit and we sat there in awe, witnessing true love and compassion. The rest of this mother and grandmothers family looked on smiling and it was then I made the connection they quite possibly were her full time caregivers. On top of being parents to 3 spirited boys they had to be exhausted. We were humbled and moved as tears pour down our faces. I so wanted to approach this matron and acknowledge her and the wonderful family she created. She raised amazing sons and this display of quiet love and respect would be passed down to her decendents. My final point with this is that nobody was looking around for accolades. They were just in the moment. I didnt get my wish to meet them. It would have been to much. But I will never forget what a gift it was to experience that. Rick and I miss our parents everyday and would give anything to celebrate the Holidays with them again. Merry Christmas too all.
Posted on: Thu, 25 Dec 2014 15:09:46 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015