Thursday, September 17, 2015 September Family Update Feeling Blessed....

A few days ago I brought Jacob to the doctor to have his annual physical examination.

He passed it without any problems, but that is not what I am writing about today. I mention the  doctor’s visit because the office is in Vernon, CT, the town I grew up in and where my dad still lives. I thought while we were in town we would swing by Papa’s house and visit for a while. My dad really loves Jacob and Elijah and they light up when they see him. So, we drove over sadly to an empty house. I had forgotten that this day was the day he takes wood carving lessons. So, I figured I’d just head home and make lunch and get the boys to bed for nap time. That’s when it happened. Jacob asked me a question that I had not expected from him: “Daddy, can we go see Gramma’s thing?”  After a few clarifying questions, I figured out the “thing” he was referring to was my mom’s grave. 

Yeah!!            Wow!!        He’s four years old.

My mom passed away a little over a year ago now and there have been occasional questions about Gramma, but not this. My beautiful little boy wanted to tell Gramma he loves her. So I took quick but safe action to not turn onto the highway and headed to the cemetery which is also in Vernon.  I turned into the graveyard and made our way over to the spot where Mom is buried and I let Jacob out.  It was its own little blessing that Elijah had fallen asleep so this was a moment for Jacob and I to share. As we approached the stone, I was overcome by many different emotions at once and I began to cry. I was sad that I can no longer hug my mom, sad that our children are going to miss out on Gramma Grotton, but even more I was so proud - not haughty proud - just proud of our four-year-old, sweet Jacob who spoke up so he could talk to Gramma. I helped him figure out what he wanted to say and he said, “I love you Gramma, I miss you. I am glad you are with Jesus.” We then prayed and I hugged him, told him I love him and we got back in the van to continue our day. 

I could not stop thinking about this for the next several hours and as I reflected on what had happened, I began to realize what an amazing thing this was. As I mentioned, Elijah had fallen asleep which allowed for this to be essentially just a Jacob and Daddy moment. Sadly, Elijah was too young to really “know” my mom, but Jacob, on the other hand, very much remembers Gramma Grotton.  While we talked and prayed at the graveside, Jacob was very sober and subdued for typically very active four-year-old.  At that moment, he possessed a much deeper understanding than I’ve seen in him so far. I love how God uses little children and their innocence to reflect His love, truth and grace into busy adults’ lives. It was definitely a moment to slow down from the fast-paced “normal” daily routine. I am so thankful Jacob spoke up and that I listened to him. It was a very special moment I will hold in my heart forever. I also pray that you would also learn from this to maybe slow down a little from all the “things” that are pushing you along on your daily life making too much noise where you cannot even hear the Lord when he wants to talk to you. 

Thanks for your ongoing support and prayers. We are continuing to contact people to join our financial support team and we always appreciate prayers as we balance our days between home life, support raising and Danielle’s work schedule.  Perhaps you have a question before joining with the work in Vina del Mar, Chile.  Just get in touch at [email protected] and we would be happy to connect with you