A Long December

It was a long December for me and my entire family, as my mom went home to the Lord on New Year's Day after a 16-year battle with cancer. Needless to say, writing a blog about my fitness level never entered my mind, and it's still hard to write about it now.

My mom was the most courageous, loving woman I knew. After my dad died at the incredibly young age of 39 -- of a heart attack -- my 36-year-old mom had to pick up the pieces and raise five children, ages 5, 10 (me), 13, 15 and 17. She had never worked a day in her life, but that didn't stop her from setting out and doing what needed to be done for her family. She started at K-Mart, then J.C. Penney, then the federal government, where she worked for 20 years, starting as a GS-3 before retiring as a GS-13. Along the way she put three kids through college, loved all of her 13 grandchildren, and married a great man who literally took her all over the world.

She wanted to make it through one last Christmas with her family, and she did. We were all there -- all five kids, all 13 grandkids -- spending one last Christmas with the family matriarch. She didn't talk much, didn't move around much... she just watched the family she loved so much enjoy the greatest day of the year for her. Once Christmas day passed, she was ready to go, and the Lord called her home on January 1, just one day before the day my father died in 1976.

Those without faith would consider this an omen. But my mom instilled a strong faith in Christ from the earliest ages -- indeed, she confirmed her love of Christ just a few days before her passing, and looked forward to the day when she would once again see my dad, in the full glory of Heaven and before our Saviour, Jesus Christ.

It has been a hard few weeks since her passing, and there are still times I find myself reaching for my cell phone ready to give her a call to tell her something that was important to me -- for she always loved to share in our good news. It pains me when the realization strikes home, but then I remember that she is in the better place, and it is our responsibility to pick up the pieces and move on with our lives.

My mom, who worked so hard to build such a wonderful family, would have it no other way.
And I praise God for giving me such a wonderful mom, who I look forward to seeing again when the Lord calls me home.