Gather Together
Hello my friends! How has your week gone? The copious amounts of rain have been VERY good for the flowers and the grass, but it is good to finally see some sun! This week we took our first trip in our “new to us” camper. Off to beautiful Cape Breton to spend some time with family. While there we gathered together to love and support one another as we laid our dearest Papa to rest. He was a great man in the eyes of many and we were delighted as so many gathered at the graveside to pay their respects, to say their farewells and to support one another; something our family does incredibly well. I was privileged, at the graveside, to share about the life of this precious man and wanted to take this opportunity to tell you a bit about my Papa; a man that greatly shaped my life.
Here we find ourselves, gathered together again, a tight knit group of family and friends. Those going by and seeing our gathering perceive only our grief; what they miss with their brief glance is our deep love for one another– grieving should never happen in isolation and in this family it never does.
5 Months
We gather today, 5 months, 5 long months after Jacob Daniel Shaw, let go his grasp on this world and opened his hands wide to take hold of eternity. He was known by many titles; husband, father, brother, uncle, papa, papa Jake, dear friend. In my mind we can sum him up in two phrases – the rock we all leaned on – and the glue that held it all together. For most of us, we can’t remember a time when he wasn’t a part of us and for those of us who can, we can’t imagine how we ever got along without him in the before. And now, for all of us, the question looms large, how will we move forward without him?
95 Years
How could one man, in almost 95 years have such an impact? How could one man be so very human and so very real and yet find himself elevated in the minds and hearts of so many?
Authentic
He was always himself, no matter the person or the circumstance, never fake, never put on. He said it like it was, even if it might not be one hundred percent politically correct or popular.
Wisdom
He didn’t have a lot of formal education but he had a lifetime of experiences that he took time to reflect on and grow from and that made him the smartest man I’ve ever known.
Hands that Held
He was a giant of a man with giant sized hands; those hands that did hard physical work for much of their life, were the same hands that also gently and firmly held each one of us at some point- through a handshake, a hand hold, a stroke on the cheek, a pat on the head.
Squeezed In
We were never too old to find a place on his lap or squeezed into the chair beside him and his arms were always open and ready for a hug.
Quiet Faith
He had a quiet and straightforward faith. Many times when I was struggling he simply asked, “Are you talking to the man upstairs?” He understood that although he knew much and had much to offer there were some things he had to pass over to God.
Family
He believed in the importance and necessity of family. He believed in the power of stories. But most of all he believed in us, each and every one of us, no matter where we were on our journey. When we couldn’t believe for ourselves, he believed for us.
Footsteps
So how do we journey on? Where do we go from here? We need to take that impact, the lessons he modeled, and make sure we are continuing to walk in his footsteps in our journey. They are big footsteps to follow in but I believe that as we follow in them and grow, our footsteps will in turn enlarge and we make a footpath for those coming behind us.
What We Believe
We need to believe in the inherent worth of people, the importance of sharing our stories, the necessity of family, the need to reflect on our life and continue to grow through our experiences, the need to be real, the joy of holding one another firmly but gently, believing for one another, holding each other close and squeezing in close together.
Until Eternity
In the time I spent with him the week before he left us, despite the fact that he was dealing with his own discomfort and mortality, he took the time to sit with me; to hold me firmly but gently with those giant sized hands, to remind me of the important things in life, to make sure I knew how much I was loved. And in the last moments before I left as I looked one last time into those beautiful eyes, those eyes looked into the very centre of my soul with a fierce intensity and enough love to last me until we meet again in eternity.
Our Promise Until Eternity
Today, we gather together, as a family; a family that may be scattered in the everyday by time and distance and priorities, but a family that knows how to pull together in an instant when it is most important. Today we gather to honour the rock that we have all leaned on and the glue that has held it all together. Today we gather to hold each other firmly but gently as our breath catches again at the void we feel in the realness that he is not with us. Today as we say farewell and till we meet again to our dearest Papa, we also promise to walk out his legacy by being the rock that each of can lean on and a part of the glue that will continue to hold it all together, because we are family, his family. Until we meet again in eternity, our dearest Papa.
If you are interested in more Devotional reading, head over to my Facebook Page where you will find a Weekly Devotion early every Monday morning. Click the button below to go directly to the Weekly Devotions.
Until next time
From my heart to yours,
laurie