The Seasons of Change

About two weeks before Easter, my beloved dad went to be with his Lord and Savior. It was an unexpected journey that left my family feeling the grief and sorrow that any normal family would feel at the loss of a loved one, but through it all we have striven to remember these simple facts.


 My Father is now in his eternal home where there exists no sorrow, no tears, no pain, and no fear.
Our loss is his gain as he walks hand in hand with Jesus.
We will see him again because death of our mortal bodies is not really death.

As my family began taking one day at a time and made the choice of joy instead of despair, I noticed that my brother's and my children, all under the age of ten, grieved for a day or two and then like rubber-bands snapped quickly back into their normal routines of laughter and play. As I thought about that, I was glad that they didn't have to work so hard at resisting feelings of depression, sadness, and grief. In all honesty, I wished that I too could so easily and quickly move passed what I was feeling.



God seems to have given children a resiliency that few adults possess which allows them to continue to learn and grow and it is our job as parents to do whatever we can to help them stay that way as long as possible. That is why I work so hard each day to move passed my grief and sorrow and and show my daughter that while I miss my dad I have joyful and wonderful memories. I don't want her fretting because she thinks I feel sad, I don't want her to be afraid of death, but I do want her to believe that God provides us with comfort and peace even though we don't see the bigger picture as clearly as he does.





All of this struggling to retain normalcy made me think of one of my favorite children's authors Laura Eckroat and her book The Life of Bud. Laura takes children expertly and gently through the journey of
birth, living, and dying with the story of a special bud named Bud. With
each passing season, Bud learns that each cycle in life, including
death, is a natural occurrence. When it comes time for Bud to say goodbye
to the life he has known, he learns that the essence of every living
thing is remembered and valued long after they are gone.



 So ends another episode of Kids Korner with me, Children's Author Aileen Stewart. Join me next week for another exciting episode same krazy time, same krazy channel. And feel free to drop by my personal blog Aileen's Thoughts any day of the week for even more on reading, writing, and life in general.Lonely Hearts ~ a sweet Christian Romance
The Price of Trust ~ Christian Romantic Suspense
http://www.booksbyamanda.com