The Fragility of Life

The last 24 hours have been quite the ride on a roller coaster. Yesterday, our church announced the baby shower of a member. She will be a first time mommy, and I'm so excited for her. :) I had only just received an invitation for yet another baby shower a few days beforehand. This will be her first daughter; she has 2 other sons. Joyous occasions, these are!

However, tonight I received the sad news that a lady who has been battling cancer has passed away at noon. I did not know her except by name and her struggle with cancer. She sounds like she was a jewel of a lady to get to know, a woman of sound faith no matter what came her way. "For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's." Her testimony demonstrated this very verse. I understand she lived heartily for the Lord, and she died peacefully to be with the Lord. I never knew her, but I can't imagine forgetting her.

And, of course, just a few days before that, we're still mourning lost lives and devastated hearts in Haiti after their earthquake. I really feel for those poor souls. I can't even imagine not being able to see my family again after having a meal with them just hours beforehand. Many have lost all of their families. Many more have lost their homes. Many are probably crying out to God asking, "Why, Oh Lord, why?" I pray for comfort for them. It doesn't seem like it on the surface, but the Bible promises that, "...weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." Sometimes you hit rock bottom before you can let God help you recover. I can't imagine how you can hit "more" rock bottom than losing everything you have in life but life itself. We've seen before cities which come back up from ashes and ruins, I pray Haiti can experience that, too. If Job can talk to them now....

I have been in prayer for one young woman who was in a horrific vehicle accident on Christmas Eve. I do not know her personally, but her journey in recovery has been very remarkable. Statistically speaking, she should not have survived this accident. However, she has been fighting the odds to live. She has a very faithful mom who glories in the Lord at almost every news given her. It is really neat to see their journey together. Here is her website if you'd like to follow her journey. Here name is Andi Webb.

In the meantime, I found out that my mom's neighbor's dog passed away. I am saddened but extremely relieved to hear this. ***If you don't wanna be hacked off, I suggest you bypass the bottom of my post, where I'll put my comment about that situation.

Today, I received an email from a wonderful friend of mine, whose twin boys are friends with my T12. They will be celebrating their 13th birthday next weekend and they asked that T12 will join them. My, has time flown by already!! I'm reminded that in about 8 more months, T12 will be 13, too!

Obviously there are many milestones in between birth, life and death, and eternity, but it just seems like some days are more pronounced than others. The last few days have been like that for me. I thank God for that awareness each and every day. Be it people or animals, each life is important. You sometimes don't realize their touch on your life until they're gone.

***WARNING*** If you don't want to be hacked off, I suggest you bypass this part of my post.

My mom told me that her neighbor's dog has died today. I am saddened b/c she was the sweetest 18-year-old baby you could ever meet. If you know anything about Irish Setters, they are painfully loyal dogs who would love you up a storm. : ) However, I'm very relieved at her passing. Unfortunately, this dog has been living (???) at the neighbor's house. She belongs to the neighbor's grandson. Her last 3 years of life had been spent in shameful neglect. There was no way for my parents to alert any authorities because there WAS NO authority who could help relieve her misery. The neighbor (owner) did not give 2 cents about her and treated her exactly as such. Why her grandson left the dog with her, I have no clue. He was gone most of the week, and when he'd return, the dog would be so happy to see him, only for him to leave her for yet another week. Why he did not try to give her to someone who could better care for her, I have never known. My mom offered to take her, but he refused to let her. The poor baby became depressed, hungry, hot (summers can be brutal here), thirsty, sick, and she froze a couple of weeks ago when we had unusually icy weather. It was painful to watch this, let me tell you. She perked up when she saw us, but the neighbor had banned us from being near her property (my dad also banned her from his property, so you can tell where THIS led, sigh), so we had to stop attending to her basic needs. I am thankful that she is finally relieved of her sorrow and misery. If the grandson knows what's best for him, he better not try to get another pet around here. Between members of my family, there just might be trouble. >: (
"A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast."
Don't have pets if you can't or don't want to take care of them.