And Two Shall Become One

Whenever her husband would start snoring, she would remedy it by gently tapping him on the shoulder and saying, "Baby, roll on your side." Without waking up, he would rollover and the snoring would stop. On this particular evening, she was extremely tired. She had spent the entire week completing end-of-the-year reports, Christmas shopping and planning for both her daughter‘s wedding and college graduation. When it was time to go to bed, she fell asleep before she knew it. Needless to say she was awakened in the middle of the night by the sound of snoring. She was so tired she didn’t even feel like tapping her husband on the shoulder, but the snoring stopped so she went back to sleep. About an hour later, the snoring woke her up again. She listened for a moment, but stopped again. She begin to get irritated. She wondered if her husband was in one of his playful moods. She thought to herself, “I’m not in the mood for games. I know he’s not playing right in the middle of the night. He knows how tired I am.” In the middle of her silent tantrum, she fell asleep again. Moments laters, the snoring woke her up again! She jumped up quickly in the bed ready to confront her husband and irritated at his insensitivity. Her words paused in mid air when she saw his side of the bed was empty. Then she remembered,  “Oh wait, he’s not here.” She couldn’t help but laugh at herself and then she said  “Lord I know the preacher said, 'and the two shall become one,'" but certainly you didn’t mean me beginning to snore as well.” With another quick giggle, she snuggled under the covers and went back to sleep.

I Cried In His Arms

I cried in his arms this morning...

It was 3AM and my sleep was interrupted by my heavy heart and nonstop mind racing. I have so much to do, not enough help/time to do it and challenges to overcome EVERY DAY. PLUS, the holiday season is always the hardest for me. I really REALLY miss my sister. I tried to be a big girl by staying busy but I guess there comes a time when even the strongest woman has her breaking point.

I could feel when he sat up in bed. I tried to pretend like I was sleep but he called my bluff. He asked me what was wrong and I replied "Nothing." I didn't want to talk but he was persistent. He took me into his arms and said "Let me hold you and listen to YOU this time." I laid my head on his chest. His heartbeat sounded like sweet music and the warmth of his arms immediately began to sooth me. I didn't know how to say what I was feeling. I'm sure my initial words seemed more like rambling but he was patient. He listened quietly as I talked. My tears melted away into his t-shirt. After I was done talking, he spoke words of encouragement into me and reminded me of my purpose. He gave me tough love about remaining strong and challenged me to remain grateful for all God has done for me. Then he sealed his words with a kiss and in that moment, I was reminded that everything is going to be okay......

I thank God for my sweet Travis....

Being There...

Last week I had to fulfill one of the most difficult duties as First Lady. A young couple in our church lost their dad in a boating accident. Because of the weather we were experiencing from Hurricane Irma, it took the recovery team longer than expected to recover his body. It was heartbreaking to see the family cry out in agony.They were not only grieving the loss of their loved one, but suffering through the wait of locating his body. I felt helpless and I really didn't know what to do so I prayed silently to God asking him to please give me the words that could help this family in someway. The only thing he told me to do, was be there. 

Please keep in mind, my husband and I didn't know the entire family, we only knew the young couple. While we wanted to let them know we cared, we didn't want to seem intrusive. I was surprised when the mother of the family requested we come back to the site on day two of the search. My husband and I prayed with them. We spoke words of encouragement into their ears, brought them meals and hugged them when needed but still, it didn't feel like it was enough. 

We spent four of the five search and recovery days waiting with the family at the boating dock. Most of the time was spent waiting with family in silence as they watch the recovery team work tirelessly. After five days of searching, the authorities found the body of their missing father in the late afternoon. The discovery was met with mixed emotion. Happiness, because now the family could bring him home and sorrow because his death was now a confirmed reality. We met with the family at the hospital as they waited for the Coroner to complete paperwork. I thanked God for giving the family closure by bringing the search to an end but surprisingly, I found myself giving him thanks for an unexpected lesson that I learned. 

You see, just before we left the hospital, the mother of the young couple pulled me to the side, hugged me and whispered, "Thank you so much for being here. You don't know how much you've helped me." I was surprised by her words. As I said earlier, most of our time with the family were spent in silence at the boating dock. But then God spoke to me and said "It wasn't what you said, it was simply because you were there."  

Sometimes we abandon our friends and family in their time of need because we are afraid of saying or doing the wrong things. By instinct we search for the words that will dry tears and make everything better and when we don't know what to say, we stay away. That can be a huge mistake if the person(s) didn't request privacy. People need love and support. They don't always need words. 

Lesson from God learned....It's not always in what we say, sometimes hearts are comforted simply because we were there.