Days of Remembrance

This is one of those photos that encapsulates a memory fully. I remember going to this parking-lot carnival with Grandpa Vanderburg. I remember the cotton candy and the corduroy jacket and the woven raffia headband that dug into the soft spot behind my ears ... but that I loved anyway. And I remember being here with Grandpa and feeling special.

The tanned farmer who raised six kids and took great pride in the grands. A man always good for a raspy chuckle and an eye-roll inducing joke. A man who proudly loved his wife and could grow a pumpkin so large you could sit inside of it and eat your caramel apple. A man who both unabashedly and quietly loved the Lord and those He placed in his care.

These end-of-life days are a brutal business. As believers in Christ, there is a hope and a future that brings very real comfort. But we cling to life and to those we love. Even as we desire to set free, we hold dear. These are the days of remembrance and yet also, anticipation.

Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 

Hebrews 10:23