To lose a child is to lose a piece of your heart.
On March 27th, 2015, life as I knew it was destroyed in an instant. One fateful moment that can change your life forever. She was walking to work, only blocks from our house. An inexperienced teenage driver, one careless mistake... That's all it takes to break a family in one second.
Although Lisa was my oldest child, in many ways she was the baby of the family. Lisa had struggled a lot in her teenage years. Her difficulty with Asperger's syndrome and learning challenges had been difficult for her. One by one we had faced each challenge and she had overcome. Now she was only weeks from graduating high school, was doing well at her job at Baskin Robins, and was even learning how to drive. She was at the top of her game, on good terms with all her family and happier than she had been in many years. She had passed every grade and graduated the school of this life with flying colors. Then, in one instant, with no suffering or pain, she went on to her Heavenly reward. |
But oh, how deep the pain and how great the loss was left in our family here below. As Christians "we do not grieve as those that have no hope", but that does not mean we do not grieve. No we are not immune to the heartbreaking pain and utter devastation of loosing your own child. The pain of grief is beyond description and can truly only be known by those who have experienced it. I have been to the lowest darkest place of my life, and watched my family broken apart by pain, and been powerless to help them.
And I have seen the restorative power of Christ slowly bring each one back to life and bring our family back into a place of mutual healing and understanding. The last two years have been a long journey of healing and recovery, a journey back to the light and a quest to discover beauty in the world again. Once again I have found the miracle of God's grace to be a wonder beyond my understanding. Once again I emerge from the darkness laden with treasures found only in the deepest places.
And I have seen the restorative power of Christ slowly bring each one back to life and bring our family back into a place of mutual healing and understanding. The last two years have been a long journey of healing and recovery, a journey back to the light and a quest to discover beauty in the world again. Once again I have found the miracle of God's grace to be a wonder beyond my understanding. Once again I emerge from the darkness laden with treasures found only in the deepest places.