The Value of Family Reunions

The value of family reunions has gone up for me, & I hate when death has to be the teacher for change to finally happen. 

Looking back at our 2016 family reunion I had no idea how many people wouldn’t be there to attend again in less than 10 years. 

I’ve taken family figures for granted & I don’t want to do that again. My dad is always telling me to make sure to call my grandparents, he knows the value of people who are still alive. 

A mother has lost her son. An aunt has lost her husband. Sons & daughters have lost mothers & fathers. 

I remember my grandma called me persistently earlier this year to say happy birthday and I still haven’t called her back yet. I texted back but there’s an intimacy that comes with hearing another person’s voice. 

I remember the day before my other grandmother passed, my dad gave me one of the greatest gifts I ever got. She was in hospice & he put her on the phone. 

She asked me how I was doing & I did the same. She talked to me through the pain she was going through and most importantly she told me that she loves me & I told her the same thing back. The next day she was gone. 

I feel crazy not being able to know how many years people have got left on this earth. 

I talked to an uncle, not knowing that that would be the last conversation I would ever have with him, the last time I’d ever see his smile. 

I gave my little cousin some earbuds, not knowing that I would’ve given him the moon knowing that that was the last time I’d ever see him. 

I saw another aunt & uncle at a memorial service not knowing, that that was the last time I’d see their faces. I would’ve hugged them a LOT harder if I knew that. 

If family and friends lived with countdowns over their heads with a calendar of how much time they had left on this earth, would we stop taking them for granted?

All I know is one small thing I can do at the moment is to give a call next time on a family member’s birthday and to check in more. I can get better at picking up the phone or answering a FaceTime even when it’s ‘inconvenient.’ 

You never know when is the last time you will see someone’s face or hear someone’s voice. 

With all that said, on my way home from work today, thinking about lil cuz, I was listening to a song about a guy who was talking about being with a loved one while they were on their deathbed. 

The last words of the verse goes,

“I turn & grab your hand & we all start to cry, you look me dead in the eye & say they can have my body but I still won’t die.” 

I know this life isn’t it, but it damn sure feels like it sometimes. 

Life is hard, but God is good. It doesn’t make sense but I HAVE to know it’s true. It’s got to be true, cause death doesn’t make ANY sense to me & I don’t think it ever will. 

With that in mind I’ll just leave it with this, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb & naked I will return. The Lord gave & the Lord takes away, blessed be the name of the Lord.”

Peace.