The Gift of Family

You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them.
           ~Desmond Tutu

Meet the Howes Girls!  Niece Kate on floor, my mother and sister seated and me behind..

 I have often written about my children or my grandchildren. They bring me much joy. But this past weekend I got to spend time with the nuclear family of my childhood. My sister and her daughter came for a visit from North Carolina. They stayed with my mother at her apartment and I spent time on both Saturday and Sunday with all of them.



My mother has been fighting breast cancer for over 7 years. It should have killed her way back when she was first diagnosed, but her gritty determination and an apparently strong constitution has kept her going. She has been called A Miracle by her oncologist. Her attitude about life and her example of how to face down this disease has been an inspiration to more than just my sister and I. Young niece Kate, who is a young married woman in her mid 20's, also looks to her for inspiration. As does my daughter-in-law, cousins galore, the people in her church, her former churches, the staff at the Cancer Center,  and many, many friends.  Now a spry 88 years old, she continues to knit prayer shawls for church, visit with friends nearby, attend church and Sunday school, and occasionally baby sit her great grand daughter.

We had a great weekend, spending time Saturday at my home having dinner that included my husband and my son and his daughter.  Then we spent Sunday afternoon at her apartment, dining in the retirement village dining room and mostly just chatting and laughing and enjoying each other's company.

I find myself thinking this morning about how fortunate I am that God put me in the family I have. I was raised by this loving woman (and her family-oriented, loving husband!), had a younger sister who has become one of my best friends, and we have stayed close despite long geographical distances between us. I enjoy spending time with Kate too. She will be moving sometime this spring for her job to Australia, so this trip was special for her to spend time with my mother before that departure. And as my grand daughter, now four, gets older, I hope she will retain a distinct memory of her great grandmother. She has been a loving presence in this little girl's life!

The challenge here is to follow her example and be the blessing to my own family that she has been to mine. I need to follow her example of courage in the face of disease,  her loving kindness to others and her willingness to help anyone who needs it. I want to become an example of how to live life well to my own children and grand children!