Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Papa

In August my Papa passed away.  This is something I wrote shortly after.  I hope you enjoy it.


Papa was popcorn...with lots and lots and lots of butter.
Papa was puzzles...jigsaw, wordsearches, crosswords, they didn't cause him to shudder.
Papa was pistachios and nutcrackers,
games and fun.
Papa was.

Papa was stamp collecting...from all over the world.
Papa was scrapbooking...before it was cool.
Papa was late nights at sleepovers and eggs for breakfast.
Papa was

Papa was gardening and flowers...oh, how they bloomed.
Papa was jeopardy and wheel of fortune...he always got the clues.
Papa was zoo trips and picnics,
playdates and field trips.
Papa was.

Papa was quiet and humble...soft spoken he was.
Papa was prayer and faith...an example to all
Papa was serving and loving
joyful and true.
Papa was.



And because of all Papa was
We have become all we are.
Papa's "was" is, in us, Papa's "now".


Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Change

The house is really quiet right now.  Everyone else is in bed, but I was still up doing homework that's due tomorrow.  Oh, the joys of grad school. (Which, by the way, I was accepted into! I know it's been a while since I posted).  And as I sit here in the quiet, I have some time to think.  A lot has happened over the past few months.  Change has happened.  Some of it's been really good.  Some of it's been really hard.  But change has to happen. Change has just seemed to happen more often lately.  Maybe it's partly because I'm just getting older, but in the last month or two, it's been happening in abundance. In August, I found out I was accepted into grad school.  A week later my Papa was admitted to the hospital.  A short four days later he was with Jesus (I'll admit, as much as I miss him, I'm slightly jealous he's hanging out with Jesus right now).  Right after that chaos, grad school started.  And then yesterday we dropped my baby sister off at college.  Yes, change is happening.




Yet, through all the change there is a constant.  Through all the chaos there is a peace.  God never changes.  He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  His love never changes. His holiness never changes.  So when I'm tired of all the changes happening around me, I look up.  I look to Jesus. Because he's not changing.  He's holding me as I might be fighting all the changes, but he stays the same.  In the chaos that is life, it brings incredible peace to know that God never changes.  That he is the one constant I can keep coming back to.

Change is good and necessary and sometimes bittersweet.  But what is better is the constant hope and love found in Jesus...it's unchanging, never-ending, always there.  That's the best.