This has been the reality in my heart for the last 10 days or so…
I remember the first days after my brothers accident, I did not feel any gratitude….
But slowly there was room in my heart for both…
It is odd to be able to honestly say that I am deeply grateful and deeply grieving…
We are surrounded by people who continue to pray and love us well….
We are changed by hearing the stories of Len’s impact in people’s lives…
We are standing together as a family, laughing and crying, offering much love and grace to one another….
My Dad shared the following and perhaps it speaks best to our grieving and our gratitude…
We have felt surrounded by all of you and we are deeply grateful, despite the sadness we feel about Len’s passing. No one expects tragic accidents to happen even though we know that they happen all the time – to other people. This time it did not pass us by and it brings, as you can imagine, deep sorrow and a heartache that is difficult to grasp – even for us. At the same time, we were encouraged by the way friends and family from far and near (brothers, sisters, cousins, etc) surrounded us with love, empathy and concern. Thank you all.
We mourn – but we do not mourn as those who are without hope. We make no claim to special insight about such tragedies and how such fit into the providence of God. But we do claim the assurance that God’s grace is sufficient for every burden – and His balm for every hurt. We will be more sensitive to the hurts of others and more responsive to persons and situations that break people’s hearts. We experienced both that grace and that balm through you.
I wish I did not understand how I can be deeply grieving and deeply grateful.
And if I must understand deeply grieving, I am so thankful I can combine it with deeply grateful….