I set up a CarePages
blog site a few days before Daddy went into hospice. On it, I posted daily updates
for friends and family. I started combining memories of my dad, moments of appreciation
for a particular day and updates of his status to create snapshots in time for
those who followed the page.
As my entries
became more personal, the messages posted began to reflect the content of that
day’s update. In one of my entries, I commented, “I’m grateful for the miracle
of this time of captured moments.” In response, a friend stated, “I appreciate
you sharing these loving ‘minute miracles’ with all of us.”
A few days
later, my update was about puzzles. My brother, his girlfriend and I had
finished a puzzle that my dad started months earlier, before spending two of
his last three months in the hospital. Over the years, I have many fond memories
of working puzzles with my dad and siblings. (My mom didn’t enjoy puzzles — she
was often in the kitchen making us something delicious to eat.) Putting a
puzzle together was a way to visit about the day’s happenings while creating
together.
After finishing
the puzzle, I was reading When God Winks
by SQuire Rushnell and was brought to tears by this excerpt … “Our view of life
is limited. We go from day to day, looking at one puzzle piece at a time. But
there is another perspective. While we are trying to make sense out of one
odd-looking piece after another, we can take comfort know that all of the pieces
DO fit into a plan that could only have been created by a higher power. Only
when we near the finish and begin to attain a more global perspective does the
whole composition have clarity.” I added this excerpt to my update about the
completion of the puzzle.
My cousin Sherry
commented, “That is a lovely thought. We are so looking forward to seeing your
dad later this week, if that fits into the puzzle. What a beautiful scene his
life is and has been over the years.”
At the memorial
service celebrating Daddy’s life, many told me how the daily updates helped
prompt their own wonderful memories of him.
After Daddy
died, I created a spiral-bound book that included all the entries and comments
from those who followed the updates. When I read those pages, now almost two
years after his passing, I am stunned by the encouragement and love that poured
out from friends and family, prompted by my few paragraphs every day.
I encourage you
to write when all is well, as well as write when passing through a difficult
time. When life is especially hectic or sad, as in an illness or a loved one’s
transition from life to death, the days blur. A few written thoughts or
paragraphs give expression to emotion — particularly when life feels too overwhelming
to speak it aloud. Write to tell people you love them. It serves as a
remembrance of sacred times, those filled with joy and those awash in grief.
CaringBridge.org
and CarePages.com provide free blog
sites designed to keep family, friends and communities connected.
____________
____________
No comments:
Post a Comment