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| Courtesy Christina Jones Hooker |
When Son #1 was in high school, Tom Friedman's book, The World is Flat, was released. That book captivated me, and we spent not enough time discussing it. I do remember saying that my son's world of work was going to be far different than anything his dad and I could imagine. In fact, I said, "Your waking and sleeping hours may be affected because you find yourself doing business with people half a globe away."
Hello?
God must have been laughing up a storm because he knew that, in less
than 5 years, I'd be skyping with my son while he sat in his hotel
suite in Australia. Before he left, his waking and sleeping hours were adjusted, so he could do business with colleagues there. Sometimes, God makes you laugh.
Sometimes,
God makes you cry. Tonight is one of those nights. My heartache began
way back in 2008 because the US economy had crashed. We were soon to
be on the road again because my husband managed to snag a good job in
a bad economy. Being the proactive homeschooling mom I am, I started
looking for homeschool resources in our new area as soon as we nailed
down the location.
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| Courtesy Christina Jones Hooker |
I
looked over the various homeschool support groups and found one that
looked like it might fit my needs. I opted into their loop with a
short explanation to the moderator about who we were and why we were
headed that way. In not too long a time, my world had become flatter.
I was making friends in advance of our move. One thing did NOT lead
to another as you know by now. So, we ended up not moving after all.
A
funny thing happened on the way to not moving. About a dozen of the
friends I never got to meet face-to-face gradually became a part of
my day-to-day existence thanks to the wonders of the internet. Via
Facebook, email, and this blog, we developed relationships that
transcended distance.
They
make me laugh on days I feel like crying. I cry with them when life
takes its toll. I am often humbled and ask, “Why? Why do they hold
me close in their hearts even tho' we never got to share life's
journey up close and in person.” I am humbled to tears sometimes
when I think of it.
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| Courtesy Christina Jones Hooker |
Perhaps
you heard it tonight? A collective gasp that rose from our little
corner of the cyber world. One of the ladies that adopted me as her
own and would not let me go, is gone. Gone
too soon. For the 3rd time in less than 3 months, I am
stunned anew by the fragility of life. She was only 35.
Christina
captivated me when we first 'met' because she was the mother of 5
girls who ranged in age from infancy to tweens. She had goats, and oh
the stories she could tell about those goats. I would tease her that
I wanted to be a country girl. Since I had too much city girl in me
to carry it off, I was living vicariously through her and her goats. Most recently, I chided her for posting pictures of a snake in a tree in their yard. I am a fraidy cat, ya know?
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| Courtesy Mad Penguin Creative |
Invariably,
she would post some picture of a project she had completed: item of
clothing sewn, piece of furniture made, the list went on. I'd tell
her she had inspired me to tackle my kitchen overhaul. Some days I
thanked her. Other days I blamed her.
We
prayed for each other and cheered each other on. If one did not hear
from the other in too long a time, we'd do a 'status check'. I came
in from class last night to read the shocking words that she had been
rushed to the ER clinging to life. As today wore on, the news grew
more grim. While I was in class tonight, the phone call I had dreaded
all day came. I did not want to take the call.
Like
all her friends, I am asking God what I have so often asked this last
few years: why? I cannot imagine checking Facebook again tomorrow and
not seeing something from her that will make me laugh. I cannot
imagine not seeing another picture post. I cannot imagine that I
never got to meet her in person. Grief echoes off these quiet walls
tonight and ricochets into my heart like a bullet.
I
am humbled, and I am thankful to have called her my friend. What
would I have lost had not this flat world of ours allowed me the
priceless gift of her presence in my life? I am thankful that, for
the Christian, death is not the end. This momentary goodbye is more
than I can bear tonight. But, in the expanse of time, it is only
momentary.
When
I was young, the concept of heaven was a scary, foreign thing to me.
The older I get, the more I think of it as a grand family reunion in
which there will be no awkward moments, strained feelings, messy
agendas, or any of the other things that complicate life on earth.
Christina
finished the good plan God had designed for her to complete on this
earth. I cannot get my head around that fact tonight because all that
is in me cries, “Why?” for the sake of her family, especially her
beloved husband and treasured daughters.
Till
we meet again my forever friend, Godspeed – and may his loving arms
surround your family in ways too sweet to describe.
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| Courtesy Mad Penguin Creative |
2
Timothy 4:7 (NIV)
I
have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the
faith.
2
Corinthians 5:8 (NIV)
We
are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and
at home with the Lord.
In
honor and loving memory of Christina Jones Hooker.
