Months earlier, my sister-in-law had tragically lost her husband to a heart attack. My wife had spent several months in Ohio caring for her sister and walking through those dark days by her side. In addition, my widowed dad was now in his mid-seventies and as an only child, I was becoming more and more uncomfortable living several hours away from him. After a time of prayer and discernment, it became clear to us that God was calling us home to care for family.
So I found myself standing before hundreds of people who we had known as family for over seven years, telling them of our plans. One of the things I said that day was that I would never regret the time my son would have with his grandpa. Little did I know how prophetic those words would be.
We moved back in early 2013, and that fall my dad ended up spending a few weeks in the hospital and almost two months in a rehab facility. It was at that time that Dad's doctor asked us to move in with Dad to care for him. For the next eleven months my wife, son, and I experienced the challenge of living in someone else's space and my dad dealt with having to share his space with us. At times it was very difficult for all us, trying to learn to live together, respecting each other's privacy, and finding a delicate balance of give and take. Some days it was agonizing and other days it was wonderful. There was laughter and there were tears; we experienced conflict and compassion.
But now, less than two years after we moved home and less than a year after we moved into my childhood home, we walk every morning past an empty bedroom, a constant reminder of a missing family member.
There is something that helps fill the emptiness. Even in the midst of loss, I find comfort. While my dad will never again sleep in that bed or walk the halls of this house, the memories linger like a gentle mist, like the fragrance of a candle.
Those words I spoke nearly two years ago continue to echo in my mind... "I will never regret."
Was it difficult to move away from a place we love and people we care deeply for? Yes.
Was it difficult to give up our freedom and move in with my dad? Yes.
But it was all worth it.
It was worth it to spend some time with my dad.
It was worth it to know that we brought some joy to my dad's last days.
And most of all, it was worth it because we were able to plant seeds that provided an eternal harvest as my dad accepted Christ in his last days.
shine!
Jason
