Walking alongside……in faith and in spirit

My Aunt Lorene died yesterday…….a really remarkable woman of faith Not the flighty “God will provide, so I don’t have to do anything” sort, rather, she was the down to earth, get your hands dirty in the garden, and get out and give God a hand kind of person.

Lorene died surrounded by family and held up in the love of family and friends and a whole community of people that her life had touched.

As Fred and I are here in Arizona, and have kept in touch by the wonders of computers and cell phones, our hearts and minds kept turning to those lovingly sitting at Lorene’s bedside in Springfield, MO…… especially Uncle George, who had to say what must be the hardest of goodbyes……and to my Mom, who is grieving the loss of a sister-in-law, but also grieves for her little brother. And for my cousins David and Tim, who lost a mother, who so often is the ‘heart’ of a family.

Each morning this week, Fred and I have gotten out to hike in the State Park where we are staying. And each morning, as we walked along, we marveled at God’s creation, and the beauty that is present even in the desert. (Yes, I AM beginning to appreciate the desert!)

We took the time to consciously feel a sense of spirituality and connectedness  through  the grandeur of God in nature…….

And felt that, with each step, we were walking alongside…………