As most of you know, both Shirley and I were married for a number of years before losing our spouses. Shirley lost Bob in an accident, and I lost Judy after a long battle with brain tumors. Shirley and I didn’t know each until we met at Trinity Lutheran Seminary in 2000, but we have often compared our feelings concerning what we went through during those periods of lost.
For me, when we decided to put Judy under Hospice care, we knew that she was going to pass away at some point, and we did begin to grieve her lost before-hand. However, nothing could prepare us for when it really did happen. For Shirley and her family, Bob was well and healthy at one moment, and the next moment he was gone. The shock and heartache, came all at once and of course was very overwhelming to everyone.
When any of us loses a loved one, we deal with it differently based on a number of factors, for this is something that can’t be ignored. I will not go through all of the gut-wrenching moments that we both experienced after Bob and Judy passed away, only to note that it was long and extremely trying for both of us, and our family and friends. However, at some point, we had to acknowledge the fact that they were gone, and we had a new normal that we had to grow into slowly on a day-to-day basis. As much as we longed to have them back, we couldn’t bring them back, no matter what we did. Our new normal was a life without them.
In this time of a COVID-19 and Racial Injustice Pandemic, all of us have had to deal with aspects of our life that are drastically changed, and in many of situations we don’t any control concerning these changes. Today we have a new normal in dealing with these issues, and no doubt, after we come through this period, we will have another new normal that we will have to adjust to also. We can keep the memories and lessons learned from our past experiences, but at some point, we have to let them go in order to move ahead.
Just as Shirley and I would have loved to bring Bob and Judy back, we couldn’t. Their love is a part of who we are today, and will always be with us from that standpoint, and we will never forget them. But at some point, we had to adjust to this new normal. In the same way, please pray for the courage, wisdom, and persistence to be open to how God’s Spirit may be guiding you through, and to the other side of these crises. May that Spirit help you to adjust to the new normal that is awaiting the entire World at some point in the future. Be safe and well! Vernon T.
Copyright © 2020 Vernon T. Jones, All Rights Reserved
For me, when we decided to put Judy under Hospice care, we knew that she was going to pass away at some point, and we did begin to grieve her lost before-hand. However, nothing could prepare us for when it really did happen. For Shirley and her family, Bob was well and healthy at one moment, and the next moment he was gone. The shock and heartache, came all at once and of course was very overwhelming to everyone.
When any of us loses a loved one, we deal with it differently based on a number of factors, for this is something that can’t be ignored. I will not go through all of the gut-wrenching moments that we both experienced after Bob and Judy passed away, only to note that it was long and extremely trying for both of us, and our family and friends. However, at some point, we had to acknowledge the fact that they were gone, and we had a new normal that we had to grow into slowly on a day-to-day basis. As much as we longed to have them back, we couldn’t bring them back, no matter what we did. Our new normal was a life without them.
In this time of a COVID-19 and Racial Injustice Pandemic, all of us have had to deal with aspects of our life that are drastically changed, and in many of situations we don’t any control concerning these changes. Today we have a new normal in dealing with these issues, and no doubt, after we come through this period, we will have another new normal that we will have to adjust to also. We can keep the memories and lessons learned from our past experiences, but at some point, we have to let them go in order to move ahead.
Just as Shirley and I would have loved to bring Bob and Judy back, we couldn’t. Their love is a part of who we are today, and will always be with us from that standpoint, and we will never forget them. But at some point, we had to adjust to this new normal. In the same way, please pray for the courage, wisdom, and persistence to be open to how God’s Spirit may be guiding you through, and to the other side of these crises. May that Spirit help you to adjust to the new normal that is awaiting the entire World at some point in the future. Be safe and well! Vernon T.
Copyright © 2020 Vernon T. Jones, All Rights Reserved
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