What healing moments we can offer each other
Friday December 14th 2012, 11:56 pm
Filed under: Family,Friends,Life

It’s your birthday and I get the cake? my friend Deanne marveled yesterday in a message. But somehow, for all the attempts at getting together, it didn’t quite happen then.

I had made her and her family a chocolate torte as a thank you for an airport ride and the other of the pair was to go to Julia and her family for the same reason.  (Sue waved away the calories for now.) I had decided I’d better call before dropping them off, since the ganache part shouldn’t be at room temperature for hours on end–but yesterday we just didn’t connect, any of us, I just got answering machines.  So the tortes stayed in my fridge for the day.

I also had two almost-rollaboard-size suitcases to give to a young family, in great shape because they had no wheels and so had long gone unused–those, too, I was supposed to get delivered in the last two days but somehow it just didn’t happen.

I picked John up from the airport this afternoon. I was never so glad to see my own sweet child right there with me safe and sound and my heart is beyond words for all those parents in Connecticut who will never again have that comfort. I was listening to the President on the radio as I drove, and the long silence… twelve seconds, the reporter said it was, and then seven more as he struggled with his tears, all of our tears on his face and in his voice… All those innocent kindergartners and first graders. All those good people. They were our children. They were our teachers.

The chocolate tortes got delivered today, instead. The right day. (Who could possibly have known.) Friends opened their doors and exclaimed over them, over John being with me, home for Christmas, how good to see him! We zipped back home for the forgotten green Travelpros and then dropped those off too, waving hi at the little kids playing outside with their next-door friends we knew well, too, that dad raking the leaves as he kept watch over them, the other young parents welcoming us in.

Love and coming together, again and again and again, was such a dearly-bought, vitally needed thing.


6 Comments so far
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Just when I think I have run out of tears I find there are plenty more that pour down my cheeks in such utter sadness for those families in Sandy Hook, Ct. I used to live one town away from that sleepy little New England village with its iconic white steepled church on the main street. It will never be the same. My prayers haven’t stopped yet for those babies taken from their families at so young an age, the same age as my grandson, and for their teachers who tried to protect them. Prayers go out for those loved ones left behind who now wonder why. Please God, send them comfort in knowing their babies are safe with you now.

Comment by Jody 12.15.12 @ 1:00 am

Your comforting words are what I need this morning, as my husband and I head south to visit his son and family – four little ones who I will hug a teeny bit tighter, and they won’t know why.

Comment by Debbi 12.15.12 @ 4:43 am

Mr Cute is 2 today — I’m beyond words to express my feelings at the horrible things visited on those children not much older than that — the biggest honor we could do is to stop the gun madness in their names

Comment by bev 12.15.12 @ 8:13 am

No coincidences. Glad the timing was right and that John arrived safe and sound!

Comment by Channon 12.15.12 @ 8:31 am

My ladies will be working over the holidays and won’t be home – would you give John an extra hug for me?

Comment by twinsetellen 12.15.12 @ 10:22 am

Excuse me while I choke up over these absolutely senseless killings. Makes me wonder how the NRA explains this, or if they have any common sense solutions.

Comment by Don Meyer 12.15.12 @ 12:13 pm



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