Sunday, September 16, 2007
Family
So I come to a strange city that I have never been to for training for my new job. Because of transportation issues and all that, I have to stay here over one weekend. I have never been to Sudbury and have just spent this week doing training and then going back to my room for studying. On Wednesday I make a call to the local Church of Christ, just to get the answering machine so I know times of service. I had a few different thoughts as to what I might do for the weekend, but when I hear the voice on the machine, I pretty much knew I would be staying here for worship. Ed Klym is a guy I met while I was in Thunder Bay. I'm pretty sure that we are also distantly related. It was a neat chance to meet up and catch up with someone that I run into here are there over the years. The final clincher for my Sunday plan was when I attended the house-warming party that Ed invited me to (at his house). There I met some of my great-uncle Llyod's children and some of my great-uncle Bethel's children. I don't have all the names or a great grasp of who is who, but it was a nice connection to make in a city where I was at first all alone.
Today I went to worship with the group here and my great-uncle Bethel was there. After the formal worship he came up and chatted with me briefly. I had been warned that he was suffering from some memory loss and he probably would not know who I was (which even if he did not have memory problems I could understand not knowing). Instead he knew I was Cecil's grandson. That was special for me. I was expecting him to look more like Grandpa, I could see some of it in his face, but he really looked a lot like JC, my grandpa's big brother. That part I found interesting.
It was good to hear Ed give a sermon, I think I would have heard him preach once before, unless that was one of the Sunday's I was away in Thunder Bay. He spoke of an image of what the book of Mark is doing as it opens up. It starts pretty quickly with the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River. The image was that you could see the cross from the Jordan. The book of Mark is all about looking ahead to the cross. A great word picture for me.
Today I went out for lunch with Ed and Elaine, and on Wednesday I go to supper with Roy and Ellen (Lloyd's daughter). I'm just bursting at the seams to tell people that I've got family. Boy it is great to have that sense of belonging. I think I'm going to have to dwell on this thought more. I wonder how to give that sense of belonging to other people. People who don't have family, people who are not at home, people who are looking for a family. It makes a big difference, even when you spend the day sitting in your hotel room just studying, to know you have family, that you still belong and that you are not on your own. You can reach out if you are lonely, if you need help, if you just want to talk. There are people who accept you, who value you because you belong. There's got to be a way to bottle that idea.
Today I went to worship with the group here and my great-uncle Bethel was there. After the formal worship he came up and chatted with me briefly. I had been warned that he was suffering from some memory loss and he probably would not know who I was (which even if he did not have memory problems I could understand not knowing). Instead he knew I was Cecil's grandson. That was special for me. I was expecting him to look more like Grandpa, I could see some of it in his face, but he really looked a lot like JC, my grandpa's big brother. That part I found interesting.
It was good to hear Ed give a sermon, I think I would have heard him preach once before, unless that was one of the Sunday's I was away in Thunder Bay. He spoke of an image of what the book of Mark is doing as it opens up. It starts pretty quickly with the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River. The image was that you could see the cross from the Jordan. The book of Mark is all about looking ahead to the cross. A great word picture for me.
Today I went out for lunch with Ed and Elaine, and on Wednesday I go to supper with Roy and Ellen (Lloyd's daughter). I'm just bursting at the seams to tell people that I've got family. Boy it is great to have that sense of belonging. I think I'm going to have to dwell on this thought more. I wonder how to give that sense of belonging to other people. People who don't have family, people who are not at home, people who are looking for a family. It makes a big difference, even when you spend the day sitting in your hotel room just studying, to know you have family, that you still belong and that you are not on your own. You can reach out if you are lonely, if you need help, if you just want to talk. There are people who accept you, who value you because you belong. There's got to be a way to bottle that idea.
// posted by Eric @ 2:16 PM 
