This week has been most delightful for several reasons: first, the sun shone and there was no rain; second, Hubby and I enjoyed brief but special times with out-of-town family members.
The hiatus from our every day routine included a rare visit who with our nephew from the prairies who spent an event-filled twenty four hours renewing his acquaintance with us. Our son and his wife left the prairies several decades ago meaning opportunities to get together were limited; it was soul-satisfying to watch them interact.
Then, just a few hours after he left, my brother and his wife arrived from central British Columbia. We’ve walked and talked and shared meals and memories together. Even as I write this I look forward to extracting all the joy we can from the last few hours they have left before they return home. Even the pile of laundry calling for action tomorrow evokes the fragrant memory of family.
I realize that we’re blessed in having family to enjoy because not everyone does; for some, memories are dark ones filled with instances of abuse or estrangement. In other cases happy memories have been achieved at the cost of painful conflict resolution and much asking for and receiving of forgiveness. The tragedy of families, organizations and churches torn apart by animosity and anger is all too common.
Although I usually keep Scripture references concise, I’m including this lengthier admonition from the psalmist David as a reminder of what’s really important in life.
“How wonderful, how beautiful, when brothers and sisters get along! It’s like costly anointing oil flowing down head and beard, flowing down Aaron’s beard, flowing down the collar of his priestly robes. It’s like the dew on Mount Hermon flowing down the slopes of Zion. Yes, that’s where God commands the blessing, ordains eternal life.” Psalm 133:1-3
