Amma's Absence

A year ago at this moment, Nancy and I were sitting in this room waiting for Katharine to arrive. The chemo schedule prevented us from being in Fulton for the birth. We were relieved when the delivery ended well that night. While we had missed that big event, we had every hope that we were just experiencing a temporary absence from family involvement, not the beginning of Nancy's final decline. How wrong we were.

Today is another bittersweet event. Katharine will never remember her Amma's gentle touch, loving voice or delightful smile. That seems a grievous wrong. But I am comforted this night to know that Nancy has substituted the quiet delight she always found in being with the kids for the unsurpassed joy of being with Jesus. I also trust that Amma's love flows into Katharine through the selfless devotion to motherhood that Leah absorbed from Mom. And I expect that Katharine's life will be further enriched through the mercies of the God who gives and takes away.