God, Grace, Gratitude, and Gravy

 I would like to be able to see my father and mother face to face this morning to thank them for the multitude of loving things those two young people did to provide a good life for me, a child they had when they were themselves barely more than children.  Alas, Daddy moved beyond our Earthly reach in 1986 at age 67 1/2; and Mother made that journey in 2021 at age 98 1/2. My six aging siblings and I are in the process of liquidating and distributing the last of their belongings and settling the last of their business. 

I woke up 11 mornings ago.  I woke up. While I had slept, two small blood clots had broken loose in my bloodstream. Had they traveled a different path, I might not have awakened that morning. Or I might have awakened a paraplegic or a physical shell without mental capacity. As it was, I woke up blind in my right eye. One small clot had passed through the central retinal artery and lingered long enough to deprive my right retina of oxygen. It was without oxygen long enough to leave that retina unable to interpret light. The other clot apparently just kissed a spot in the front of my brain and left a tiny footprint there. 

In the ten days since this life adjustment, I have been repeatedly aware of how a great a gift my parents gave me by raising me in a Christian home. A Christian home in the truest sense of those words. Mother sang hymns as she worked around the house. She made sure we knew how important it was to live in accordance with God's desires for our lives; we were constantly reminded in words as well as actions that God has desires for our lives because He loves us so much.  Daddy made a point of spending time alone with each of his children, and that time was often spent in the car as he traveled between different responsibilities of his own or delivered us to one of our activities. In the car on the way to whatever, we  had meaningful conversations and even often sang and discussed hymns or Bible passages. He always seemed very interested in hearing my thoughts on whatever the topic was. He was seldom in lecturer mode. Without fail, when we arrived at our destination (meeting, visit, class, whatever) he would thank God audibly (or ask me to do so) for our safe travel and for our relationship with Him and each other. I took all that very much for granted. It was just our lives. 

And of course, as a Christian family in the forties, fifties and sixties, our lives centered around church. That entailed four church contacts every Sunday - Sunday School, morning worship, evening children/youth activities, even worship service. During the week, a Wednesday night meeting was a minimum of other church contact. Each of these instilled important words/concepts in my mind and memory. Bible verses heard, explained, discussed, memorized. Hymn and song lyrics sung, repeated, memorized, pondered. 

All that background work, done by two young parents through the years, has risen up and proclaimed its value in my life during the last eleven days. Since this huge change in my lifestyle, since I can no longer read or write or paint for any length of time, I have been very grateful for all the "words of life" planted firmly in my head by young parents who loved God enough to parent beyond their human capabilities. 

My entire childhood experience is of parents ages 18-35! That is an amazing realization for me! 

• When I was 3, my mother was the age of Ethan (Lyn's youngest.) 

• When I was in Junior High (long before the advent of Middle Schools), my mother was the age of Rachael (Steve's oldest.) 

But, back to my main point of interest this morning: My mind is fully stocked with important words of life. While concentrating on not coughing or moving during my MRI last week, my mind recited the prayer of confession from the old Methodist Communion Ritual. I've always loved those beautiful words of confession. I am grateful that they are mine on demand. "We acknowledge and bewail the manifold sins and wickedness....."
So to twenty-something cotton-mill town Charles and Ruth Baird Shaw, from 60 years ago, THANK YOU! I LOVE YOU. I MISS YOU. You did right by your children.