What a day!
I had a phone call this morning from Scotland…. at about 4am!!!
Kylie was homesick.
Tomorrow is her grandmother’s 60th wedding anniversary and her family will all be celebrating today. She organised a nice surprise for her Nan through her sister and her step-brother is taking his laptop and whatever gear he needs to Skype later this morning, but it’s not like being there. She and her Nan are close. It was her Nan that introduced her to Jesus when she was only little. Her Nan is so proud of her work in Scotland with the Churches over there – but I know she will be missing Kylie today too.
Just imagine. Sixty years of being married. I’d have to be live til a ripe old age to get there now. I’d probably forget half of it. What a dud. Oh well – at least I’m not pining away now like a sad sack… most of the time anyway. Pity about the handsome rogue that missed out on me, though. Hmmm, if he gets his act together in the next couple of years and stops by I might condescend to get hitched so that I can celebrate forgetting half our marriage when we reach 60 years. I think I’ll go for a younger man though. They used to say that women lived about 7 yrs longer than men, so perhaps I should start looking at the guys about 7 years younger than me – that way I wouldn’t end up a lone widow.
Anyway, after spending time talking to Kylie, I just couldn’t get back to sleep so I got up again and dug out my sewing gear. I’ve had patterns and fabric to make a princess dress for Emily and a fairy outfit for Jasmine. I washed the material almost as soon as I bought it, but I’ve done nothing with it since. This morning I cut out the patterns for both outfits and started on the fairy suit. I’m so excited. I can’t wait to finish it. I think I was working right up til lunch time and would probably have kept going if Karen hadn’t appeared at my door.
Jazzy is sooo going to love this outfit. Paul will have fits because she will want to wear it to places that he won’t think are suitable – but hey – how long are you seven for, right?
Where was I up to? Karen. Yeah. Right.
I was just finishing this seem and Karen knocks at my door.
Now I’m really stumped. Karen NEVER comes to visit me. I’ve often wondered if she even really likes me. Like maybe she thinks I’m some kind of hypochondriac because of the Depression or something … anyway – there she is. So I invite her in with my best manners, like she does when I visit her. I offer her a cuppa, like she does when I visit her. And we sit down in the lounge like we do when I visit her. Now I’m not sure what to do next or what she expects – because I’m not her and I’m just thinking “wait a minute, just be yourself” when she bursts into tears.
Aack!
Karen doesn’t cry.
Karen doesn’t show emotion.
Help!!!
“Karen, what is it? Is there anything I can do?”
She just keeps crying. Her tissue is fast getting shredded so I go and get my friendly box of Kleenex that I keep handy for visitors. I seem to get lots of visitors who cry. I think people think it’s more acceptable and less humiliating to cry in front of someone who gets officially depressed than in front of other people. Karen thanks me and takes another tissue.
Eventually the tears slow down and she can talk.
“I’m sorry.” First thing everybody says after they’ve cried in front of anybody. She takes a deep breath. “I just don’t know what to do. It’s Joel. He’s become really ridiculous about this whole Christianity thing. Hamish has been really good – but Joel has been at him like a …. a … a ”
“Like a Joel. I remember what he can be like, Karen. What’s he been doing?”
“He keeps telling asking him if he’s been talking to Jonah. He’s been ringing the school. He is insisting that they make sure that he doesn’t go to religious education or spend time with the children that they know have religious beliefs – which is utterly ridiculous and he knows it; he’s even taken to searching Hamish’s room to make sure that he hasn’t got any Bibles or religious books hidden. He’s ridiculous. Poor Hamish is putting up with it really patiently – which I must say surprises me because, you know, temperament-wise they have always been cut from the same cloth. He bites his tongue, he answers politely when I want to shout at Joel. I don’t know why Joel can’t believe him. I do. And I don’t know why Joel can’t see that he’s not going to shift what our son believes like he’s trying to. Anybody can see that he’s really convinced that its true.”
Go Hamish. You champion. God is faithful and holds those who cling to him in the palm of his hand … he even hangs on to ones who flail. You keep on standing in the face of opposition and be godly. To hear that his mother is seeing changes in him already is awesome.
“This is Joel we’re talking about, here Karen. You and I both love him – but we both know that he does absolutely nothing by halves.”
She sighs.
“But this. This is different. He has gone beyond reason with this. You should see him, Alciana. It truly is like watching him turn into a different man when he gets going.”
I sit with her in silence for a few moments and just listen.
“Alciana?”
“Yes.”
“I need you to explain something to me.”
My heart starts to beat faster.
“What do you want explained, Karen?”
“I need to know what exactly is this “gospel” that my son has taken hold of so strongly. I need to know what my son believes and why he is holding on to it so strongly.”
My heart is in my mouth and I have tears rising towards my eyes.
“That is something that I would be glad to do for you, Karen.”
And I gulped down a huge mouthful of cold tea.
And so it was that this afternoon I got to share the gospel with Karen. I told her what Hamish believed. How did I do it? I took her through a simple explanation using the 2 Ways to Live drawings and verses.
“And that’s it?” she asked. “That’s what’s changed my son?”
“That’s what’s transformed your son.”
“But why is Joel making such a big fuss about this? Anyone would think Hamish had joint some wild cult or something.”
“I’m not sure, Karen. He wasn’t always, but he hasn’t been reasonable about it for so long now I can’t remember when it started. He won’t talk to me about it. Paul might know more. Maybe Mum or Dad.”
“Your parents couldn’t tell me anything useful.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Do? I don’t know. I’d like to understand it more. Do you think you’d be willing to show me some more about this stuff some time? I mean, we’d need to be careful. I don’t want Joel to know. And I don’t want Hamish to either – he might think I’m taking sides or something, you know?”
“They don’t have to know, Karen. You just come around when it’s a good time for you and we can talk some more.”
I am praying here at the same time that I look something like casual – because right now I am feeling like I want to take off tap dancing around the room and singing at the top of my voice.
Karen lights up. Note – I have never ever seen Karen light up. Maybe we have just made contact, Lord. Please touch her heart and draw her to you. Karen always seems like she never really trusts anyone. Help her to trust you. Grant her faith.
Anyway, then she asks me about what I was doing when she arrived (like a good visitor), so I got to show her what I was working on for the girls. We had a good laugh about the idea of Jazz as a fairy and picturing Paul laundering fairy clothes. Mind you he already does little dresses and cleans little school shoes and all sorts of little girly things. It’s kind of sweet really. Lisa would have loved seeing him doing these things.
I miss Lisa.
Anyway, tonight’s Church held yet another surprise. Carlos and Megan have decided to make our church their home Church for the next while. This was a big surprise, but apparently after talking to the doctors this week they have taken leave of absence from everything but Carlos’ study and because none of their supporting Churches are in this area where they need to be for Carlos’ study and Megan’s medical needs they’ve chosen to join us. I’m so glad for the purely selfish reason that I’m going to love having Megan around.
I’m catching up with Megan on Wednesday after work this week. I’m going to head over there on my way home for afternoon tea.
Father, please help me to sleep well tonight after such a busy day. I’m tired after the early start. Please help me to watch my sleep this week so that I don’t get all topsy-turvy on my sleep patterns. That always ends badly. Thanks for giving me people to connect with just as I’m reminded of those I miss. And thanks for the chance to explain the gospel to Karen. Please may Hamish have his mother to turn to for support in you some day.
Amen.