Bittersweet

Well, today is my 49th birthday, and I will be taken out for dinner by my siblings and mom. I miss my brother terribly, and am not sure how long the grieving will take. He was only 40, and had massive clots in his lungs. In the meantime, life goes on. My daughter announced she is pregnant with my first grandchild, the next generation for our family. I wish my kids could have known my father, but he died when my daughter was a baby. He was only 51. Now, my grandkids won't know their terrific Uncle Neil, and it just hurts. God has His reasons, and I am one of those children who questions the Lord constantly. My only comfort is that Daddy died when Neil was only 11, so they are together now, making up for lost time. So, my first birthday without birthday cake. I have lost 34 pounds so far, that is in 9 weeks. Hugs, Trish

Oh Trish - how these days can make us reflect and relive some regrets and pain. I pray that the Lord bless your time together with your siblings and your Mom. May His peace rule the evening. When you think of Neil - may it be with the blessed assurance that he is with the Lord, and you will be with him again someday. May Jesus minister to you today - assuring you that He has you in the palm of His hand and may He comfort your heart - filling it with His love. It's so hard sometimes - and I know that I too can be one of God's kids who say "WHY?" as I am a bit right now with the pains of my own two kids. But - rest assured - that He has a plan and it's a good one. 34 lbs gone is amazing! Good for you! I hope you don't miss the cake. I wanted some of my nephews at his party, which was almost on my birthday, and then I dumped on some salsa that had pineapple and peaches in it - and suddenly the cake didn't look very good. Happy birthday to you!!! Anyway - this is your day and the Lord is singing over you!!! Take care! love, Carolyn

HAPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU.........HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU......HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR TRISH...........HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU. Hope my singing sounded as good to you as it does to me. Life gets overwhelming at times for us and I hold on tightly to the hope we have in Jesus. Because we have the hope of eternal life there will come a day when everything else pales in comparison. Hold on tight dear one and have a glorious birthday You know how precious the time we have here is. In love, Sandyd