
I’m feeling a whole lot of sad right now, y’all.
The loss of my sweet friend’s husband threw me into a tailspin last week.
I have cried a lot recalling fond memories of him. My heart is hurting deeply for his wife, left to pick up the pieces of her shattered heart.
Sigh.
That same day, as we were firming up plans to visit our son and his family for the weekend of the 4th, he shared that there will be a dark cloud hanging over their heads because they scheduled their dog to be put to sleep the week after the holiday weekend.
They recently found out that their little fur baby has bladder cancer, and further testing showed that it’s advancing very rapidly. Because they don’t want him to suffer, they’ve made the very difficult decision that all pet owners dread.
My daughter-in-law brought this little pup into their marriage. He’s a sweet boy and gets along well with our dog, which has made it easy to travel back and forth and bring the fur boys with us.
Sigh.
And then there’s the accident we missed witnessing firsthand last Thursday morning on the way to work.
The Mr. has been driving me back and forth ever since my shoulder surgery. Normally, when I drive myself, I leave between 6:45 and I because parking is an issue. With us playing “Driving Miss Daisy,” I’ve been taking advantage of the extra time (and it takes longer to get ready since I’m one-armed), so we’ve been leaving later.
Thursday, we left a lot later- as in I was barely going to arrive on time to clock in.
We were five minutes away from my building when we saw this at one of the intersections:

One of the things I love about where we live is the sound of the train passing through.
The tracks run through the middle of town. There’s no way around them. I have to cross them to and from work.
Unfortunately, about 10-15 minutes before we were to pass through this intersection, someone’s car got hit by the train.
We, along with many other cars, had to find an alternative route. I texted my boss that I was probably going to be late.
The train stretched on and on.

We finally found the end of it, and the Mr. deposited me at work. I even managed to clock in on time.
I wasn’t the only one in my office who’d had to take a detour in.
Later that day, I read that a young man from another city had lost his life in the accident.
I don’t know the specifics on the accident. All I do know is that a family started off their day learning that their loved one was gone forever. I’ve received phone calls like that before, and the pain is devastating.
Sigh.
I know there’s an ebb and flow to life, but the valleys sure do stink.
They are reminders of our need to press into God more.
I do not know how people get through tough times without having a personal relationship with Jesus.
Through all of the topsy turvy seasons of life, God is the only steady presence we can rely on.
And so it is with this sure knowledge that I lift up prayers of comfort for my friend, Barb, and my Rooster boy and his wife.
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