The kids' thoughts

Isn't God good to give us laughter during times of sadness? My children provided many laughable moments during our time in Oklahoma. I've already forgotten many of the sweet, innocent things they said during our time with my family, but here are a few moment that touched me and gave me the smile I needed.

My Papa loved to wiggle his ears. He would amuse the kids with this amazing ability, and even caught unsuspecting adults off guard. While we were at the funeral home, seeing Papa for the last time, I looked over to see Benjamin, with his finger in Papa's ear, wiggling his finger. I asked him why he was doing this. Benjamin stopped, looked up at me and said, "Remember when he used to wiggle his ears?"

Melted my heart!!

Micah seemed to be the most saddened by Papa's death. While Elizabeth was able to logically think through her grief, Micah was just left with grief that he didn't know what to do with. It was very important to him that he saw Papa.

When we first walked over to the casket, Micah was very timid and nervous. I told him he could touch Papa, and love on Papa if he wanted. He quickly responded, "You do it first!"

After I loved on Papa's hands, and saw Micah was doing okay, I turned my attention to Elizabeth, who was fine, but very hesitant about the whole situation. As I turned my attention back to Micah, I saw that he was sweetly rubbing Papa's hair, his face and his hands. The love that he had for Papa was clear.

Benjamin gave us several moments of comic relief. We had to open the entire casket to "make sure they put his legs in" and to confirm that they had put shoes on Papa. We also chuckled when Benjamin told Micah, "Quit touching him! You'll wake him up!"

As we were getting ready to leave, Micah asked me, "Why do I have to say good-bye? Can't we just come see him here again next time we're in Hokahoma?" It was hard to tell him no.

Walking this road of grief has been hard just for me. Walking it with my children has proved challenging. But how thankful I am for them!