And they said to him, “Inquire of God, we pray, that we may know whether the journey on which we are setting out will succeed.” And the priest said to them, “Go in peace. The journey on which you go is under the eye of the Lord.”
Judges 18:5-6
This morning, sitting at the kitchen counter enjoying the cool fall air flowing in through the open door, I am grateful for the peace that comes from knowing that I – that we – handled the past six plus years as well as we possibly could.
It really has been that long. It was June of 2017 when Rebekah and I took mum and dad on a cruise to Bermuda to celebrate their 65th anniversary, and I realized it wasn’t going to happen without a wheelchair for dad. It wasn’t long after that I was helping in other ways, and by the time dad turned 90 the next summer it was 24-7. All the cooking, all the cleaning, all the transportation, and – before long, all the personal care.
What’s interesting is how we develop unconscious patterns and rhythms around fixed points in our lives, and when those shift – even though they may not have been commitments we would have chosen to begin with – it is difficult to recalibrate without them.
You see, sometimes the things that we feel weigh us down are also anchors. What I’m saying is that, even though I am so very thankful that the burden of my parents’ care has been lifted, I am – very much like someone who has just retired from a job with wide-ranging responsibilities – just a little bit adrift.
The Good News:
The good news is that there is a long list of things I want to invest myself in, and that now – more than two years after she retired – Rebekah and I can finally reimagine the future together.
This good life is always a journey and an opportunity. It’s not about being busy, it is about following Jesus, about engaging the possibilities, and about living purposefully.
This is still, after all, “Derek and Rebekah’s Great Adventure!” And we are still invited to live into The Greatest Story Ever Told. And you know what? We may, in fact, already be getting younger….
Always grateful, always ready – DEREK