Has it really been two years?

It's so hard to believe that Chris has been with Jesus for 2 years already.  My friend, Karen, told me two years ago that a few years down the road I would look back and marvel at where the Lord had taken me.  In my grief I had a hard time believing it, but here I am 2 years later and I DO believe it.  God has been gracious, good, kind, faithful, loving, caring, comforting...a Father to the fatherless and a judge to the widow.  This past summer I bought a beautiful, bright orange flowered azalea bush. Today after work some of the ladies and their children joined their husbands and we buried some of Chris' ashes with the azalea.  I know that those ashes are not who Chris is, but putting them in the ground was a sort of closure.   We all then shared dinner together.  It was nice to not be alone today.  I love my MMS family and I feel so blessed to be here and still serving among them.  

Dave and Caleb dug the hole for the azalea bush.  Caleb developed pink eye and was unable to join us today, so it was nice that Caleb was able to be a part of the day.

Shawn and Dwight planting the bush in it's place.  One thing that Dwight said before the planting was that the Lord delights in the home going of one of His children.  The Lord was delighted in taking Chris home.  It's hard for those of us left behind...but the Lord's words bring comfort and hope.  One day, provided the Lord doesn't return first, the Lord will delight in each of our home goings, also.  Hmm...it blows me away that the Lord would even think of me, let alone delight in me.  I don't deserve His love.

JoAnna is putting some of her daddy's ashes around the bush.  

Dwight and Bob putting water and dirt over the roots.  Now, like Dwight told me, next year Chris will tell us that spring is coming.  Lydia picked the bright orange flower.  She didn't want the pink--she thought the guys would enjoy the orange more.

After dinner the children were outside running around.  We hadn't heard from them in a while and Donna stepped out to see what they were up to.  She came back and told me to get my camera.  When I went outside this is what I saw.  Sarah, JoAnna, Rachel and Katie were crawling under the fence, getting rocks and putting them around the azalea.  They had also picked some "flowers" to put around the bush.  I love the hearts of children.