It’s been a year of family reunions. A couple of months ago, we had Wendy’s tribe (including brother, sister, cousins, nieces, nephews, children and grandchildren) gathering at our home, playing golf and riding trains. The week before last we had my sister, bro-in-law and cousin and wife, mainly eating Thai food. And last weekend, my cousin Tim and his wife Teresa kindly hosted a gathering of my paternal cousins.
We walked from their home in rural Cambridgeshire, and enjoyed the fragrance of elderflower in the air whilst rambling alongside hedges of dog rose, fields of poppies and a myriad of other wild flowers, listening to skylarks tunefully ascending way above us.
And we enjoyed a restaurant or two. We reminisced about chasing each other on tricycles around the forecourt of my uncle’s garage in the village of Barkway back in the 1950’s, and laughed together. My sister did up her husband’s shoe laces, and I did up Wendy’s – hip-joints, broken arm, and no place to sit.
Family – I love family, and wish we saw even more of our tribe. Church too is family. I remarked to a friend recently that my greatest joys have been experienced in church – but also my greatest griefs. He replied, “That’s because we’re family, Barrie”. So true, and then I thought back to some even greater joys and griefs – they were in my natural family. But we love one another despite the griefs, and that enables us to continue to experience the joy.
And the best is yet to come. Heaven is a real place, and will surpass our wildest dreams. For those who have a real relationship with our Heavenly Father in this life, there is a whopping lot of family awaiting us in future eternity.
P.S. This is my 300th blog on this site. If you have been with me since the beginning, you are truly AMAZING!