How God is speaking to us...

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13

This has been our prayer and God has graciously been giving us His incredible joy, peace, and hope as we trust in Him.
It is also our prayer for you!




Monday 29 April 2013

Jim's Memorial Service

Jim's Memorial Service took place on Saturday afternoon, April 27 at Jim and Kim's church, Lake Avenue Congregational Church in Pasadena. It really was an uplifting service of tribute to Jim and honour to the Lord. Mom and Dad would have loved to have been able to come from OKC, but just weren't able to make the trip.

Here are my sister Barb and me with a picture of our wonderful brother. Jim was four years older than I and six years older than Barb. He passed away exactly two months before his 69th birthday.



And here we are with Jim's wife Kim and his beloved stepdaughters Nicole and her husband Thomas (on the left) and Amanda and her husband Kevin (on the right).

For many months now Jim had intended to drive Mom and Dad's car from California out to Oklahoma, as it was full of boxes of things they wanted to bring along when they made the move. He was hoping to be better by June so that he and I could possibly make the trip together, but that was not to be. So Barb and I left southern California early on Sunday morning and drove out to OK, arriving early this afternoon--in a day and a half!! We had many hours in the car to process all that has happened, share memories with grateful hearts, and to reaffirm our absolute confidence in God's will and ways even in the light of Jim's illness and death. Heaven is more attractive than ever before now that both Bob and Jim are there!!

Dad no longer drives due to vision problems, but their comfortable Cadillac will be an extra set of "wheels" for anyone in the family needing them--particularly when I come down to visit!!

I had intended to fly up to Regina this week to spend some time with our kids and grandkids there, but once again changed my plans and will be flying home to BC on Wednesday evening. I'm feeling more than ever the need to be at home and more fully come to terms with my life now without Bob. Being surrounded so much by family and friends has been great, but that and also being constantly on the move, has shielded me somewhat from sensing the reality of losing my most precious lifelong companion.

We all are SO grateful for your love, support, and prayers for us as a family and for the many expressions of sympathy and appreciation for both Bob and Jim.

Monday 22 April 2013

Jim and Bob are now together in heaven!!

This morning at 7:00 am, my brother Jim entered the presence of Jesus and I'm sure that Bob was welcoming him with open arms!!

What a journey this has been. In the middle of the night, as Jim was having such labored breathing with distress in his throat, I just cried out to the Lord for mercy--for myself as much as Jim. I just didn't think I could endure one more night watching a loved one struggle for life!!

By 3:30 am Kim, Barb, and I gathered around Jim sensing that he was nearing the gates of heaven. An hour later Barb phoned the hospice home-care nurse who came over to the house and was tremendously helpful in every way. She had visited us earlier yesterday afternoon and there was such a wonderful bond between her and all of us. She also is a woman of strong Christian faith--in the Catholic tradition.

The scene was very similar to the one in our living room almost exactly seven weeks ago. Four of Jim's favorite women were gathered around him, telling him how much we loved him and were ready to release him to Jesus. At that point our nurse suggested we sing, so we sang "Amazing Grace" and "Jesus Loves Me this I Know".

Thank you SO VERY MUCH for your love and prayers. You have walked with us on our journey and we're so grateful. The Lord has blessed us with such a wonderful family and friendship network--and an awesome God!!

Sunday 21 April 2013

My brother Jim

Just as I was thinking that it may be time to "close the book" on Bob's and my blog, I am realizing that it's still a source of information and a continued means of requesting prayer for my brother Jim.

I arrived in California on Friday afternoon to be with Jim and Kim in what may be the final days/weeks of Jim's life. He is so very thin and weak, given his inability to ingest much nutrition and the build-up of fluid in his lungs and abdominal cavity. He coughs so much which disturbs his sleep (and ours) and makes him weaker.

My sister Barb arrived yesterday, and the two of us plan to be here for a week before driving Dad and Mom's car back to OK. All of this is dependent on Jim's situation of course.

Jim's two step-daughters, are also coming. Nicole lives just an hour north of here and spent a few days here this week before I arrived, and Amanda is flying here on Thursday for ten days from NYC. Nicole's coming back today and will check in frequently. She's the ultimate organizer and is producing spreadsheets regarding Jim's care and contact information!!

As it was in Bob's final weeks, many friends are coming by to say "good-bye" (without actually saying it) and express their love and appreciation for him. It's so touching to witness these special moments and to have devotions with Jim and Kim and hear Jim pray--and Kim too.

Some very good friends from youth group days way back in the 60's came by to visit yesterday. We were all teenagers then and could never imagine the day we'd all be growing old and "gray". We had some good laughs as well as more sober moments as we all through Jim are forced to face our own mortality. But, what a grand reunion we'll have in heaven and I doubt we'll have gray hair there!!



Thanks for your continued love, support, and prayers. This is all feeling strangely familiar having just experienced the walk through the valley of the shadow with Bob. At times I just want to go home and rest and more directly process Bob's death, but I know that this is where I'm supposed to be, so the Lord will give me (and all of us) strength.

Barb and I slept together last evening and had a wonderful conversation in the middle of the night. We were marvelling at how amazing it is that our family continues to receive God's strength, peace, and such a profound sense of His presence and good purposes being accomplished through all of this. It's still hard, but God's getting us through better than we could have ever imagined.

I'll continue to post an update every few days for those who want to follow our journey.

Tuesday 16 April 2013

Heading for California


Just a short update to let you know that I'm flying to California tomorrow to be with my brother Jim and his wife Kim for an indefinite period of time. My sister Barb will join us in a few days.

It seems that the Lord is asking our family to walk through the valley of the shadow of death once again. But the good news is that HE IS WITH US, so we need not fear, but be assured that He has prepared a place where we will dwell with Him forever!!

It brings such a smile to my face when I imagine Bob welcoming Jim into heaven!!

I've been in OK with my mom and dad for almost a week. They would so much love to see Jim but won't be able to go. This picture was taken on Sunday.



Thanks for your prayers for them and all of us.

Tuesday 9 April 2013

Packing for my trip



Tonight I'm doing a job I've not often done before--pack my own suitcase!! Bob was the best packer in the world and would just tell me to spread all my clothes out on the bed and he'd pack them (perfectly, I might add) in the suitcase. I'm sure that when I unpack upon my arrival in OK tomorrow evening, there will be more wrinkles and jostling around of the contents than there ever was when Bob packed!! Oh how I miss him.

Of course he always packed his own suitcase, except on the last trip he took--on March the 5th. There was no need to gather his clothing and belongings as he would have no need of them. But a week or so later, I spread all of HIS clothes out on the bed and David and Tim gathered around the bed and tried their dad's clothes on and chose what they wanted--and each of them acquired a wonderful new wardrobe!! Bob really was a "snappy" dresser, as Barbie always said.




It's amazing that all of the shirts, sweaters, jackets, and even the shoes fit both boys!! David even inherited a couple of suits, after a little alteration in the waist of the slacks. Both of them are wearing their dad's clothes with a sense of honour, and receiving compliments on their good taste (or their dad's!!). But the sweetest outcome of this is that our grandchildren love to nuzzle their little noses into the fabric and remark with joy that they can smell "Papa"!!

In an earlier post on the blog I mentioned our granddaughter Gracyn's tears over her Papa's death, but also her delight at buying a brand new dress for Papa's funeral. Here she is dressed like a little princess that day, along with her little sister Mykenna.



Aren't they adorable?--and their mommy too!!

Please continue to pray for Kim. Although her oncologist pronounced her "cancer free" at her last check-up, she lives with the nagging fear that it may return. Every little ache or pain unsettles her, understandably so.

My brother Jim still needs prayer too. He was hoping to come up here for Bob's Memorial Service but hasn't been feeling well at all. He's having trouble eating and digesting his food and is down to 120 pounds!! He spent four days in the hospital last week as a CT scan revealed a blood clot near his heart as well as fluid on both his lungs and his abdomen. The fluid was drained and will be examined and he's on blood thinners to help dissolve the clot.

Thanks for continuing to support and pray for both Kim and Jim.

After spending a week with Mom and Dad in OK, I'll be flying to Regina for another week. Oh joy, oh delight!! I've had five days totally on my own, which I've really needed--to begin to process the reality of life without Bob. That will take a very long time I'm sure, but I'm happy now to once again be engaged with family, savouring every moment as a gift, just as Bob and I savoured every moment together in these past two years.