Just when you thought...

Hi, everyone:

At 9:15 on Sunday morning my husband dropped me off in front of Southwest Airlines at PDX. My flight didn't leave till 12:05, but we wanted hubby to be able to make it back home in time to get to church. I took a book to read and bought myself an omelet at one of the high-priced airport eateries inside the security gates.

At 11:30 they began boarding my flight bound for Sacramento, San Diego, and on to Phoenix. I was in the "B" group, which meant they boarded a couple of groups ahead of mine (the wheelchair gang and the families with kids, besides the "A" group). I chose a middle seat (which I do NOT prefer!) in Row 4 between a man about my age in the aisle seat and a young woman seated near the window. She looked to be in her early thirties.

The flight attendants went through their safety information routine and took our beverage orders. We were even given a choice between pretzels or peanuts! My seatmates and I sat in silence during the first half of the 80-minute flight. The man to my left kept fiddling with his i-Phone (it was probably new?), and the young woman just stared out the window - there was really nothing to see, just the fluffy clouds that covered the west coast. She finally spoke to me when the flight attendants came back down the aisle to pick up our empty beverage cups and peanut (pretzel?) bags.

"Where are you headed?" she asked me. We introduced ourselves (her name is Leah) and I told her I was headed to Sacramento. She asked if I live there. I said no, and went into the whole story of how I had been home for a short visit, that I am spending time with my brother right now who has terminal brain cancer - certain that my story is one of the saddest there is to be told.

She was very sweet and empathetic, and I asked her some of the same questions she had asked me. She told me she was heading home to the San Diego area and had been with family in Beaverton after her husband's dad died unexpectedly last week. She went on to say that her father-in-law had taken his own life on Tuesday after receiving a 24-hour eviction notice in conjunction with the foreclosure of his home. In going through things they found stacks of unpaid bills that had been piling up for weeks. Dad had shared none of this with his wife and she was totally sheltered and clueless that there were serious financial problems. He had managed to keep it from her, even though he had been out of work for more than two years. His suicide plan was well laid out and organized. It had obviously been contemplated for some time (he had purchased a handgun in August). The eviction notice was, no doubt, the catalyst which brought his plan to fruition.

I was speechless (unusual for me). I grabbed her hand and held it, and when I caught my breath, I asked if the family were believers with their faith to lean on during this awful time. She said no, her husband's dad was a gruff, difficult and distant man who loudly professed to be an atheist. The wife, a quiet, submissive woman with a personality capable of being shielded from the stark reality faced by their family. Ironically, the final comment in Dad's suicide note said, "God bless you all."

Leah told me she was raised in the Catholic church and has a strong faith, as does her husband. We continued to chat till we got off the airplane (I finally let go of her hand), and I told her a little about my own faith and said I would certainly be praying for her and her family. She thanked me and we parted. It's unlikely that I'll ever see her again, but I will remember that 80-minute flight for a very long time!

Just when you think you are totally in the depths of the pit and your situation is as awful and as heartwrenching as it could get... At least we know that even if we lose Dick, we'll see him again someday when we're all together in heaven. And it's still horrible, sad, and intensely painful to stand by and watch him suffer and deteriorate a little every day. Hearing a sadder story in no way mitigates that! But it IS so comforting to have the assurances we have as believers, and that we have "The Comforter" with us every moment. It's still hard to bear, and I'm still sometimes worn down by all of it, but knowing He is there beside me definitely helps to make it bearable.

I love you all - so much! Please pray for Leah.

MY TEXT FOR TODAY (I just had to use it again!): Revelation 7:17 (The Message)

14-17 Then he told me, "These are those who come from the great tribulation, and they've washed their robes, scrubbed them clean in the blood of the Lamb. That's why they're standing before God's Throne. They serve him day and night in his Temple. The One on the Throne will pitch his tent there for them: no more hunger, no more thirst, no more scorching heat. The Lamb on the Throne will shepherd them, will lead them to spring waters of Life. And God will wipe every last tear from their eyes."

FROM "NEW LIVING TRANSLATION:"
14 Then he said to me, “These are the ones who died in the great tribulation. They have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb and made them white.
15 “That is why they stand in front of God’s throne and serve him day and night in his Temple. And He who sits on the throne will give them shelter.
16 They will never again be hungry or thirsty; they will never be scorched by the heat of the sun.
17 For the Lamb on the throne will be their Shepherd. He will lead them to springs of life-giving water. And God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”

FROM "TODAY'S NIV:"
Then one of the elders asked me, "These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?"
14 I answered, "Sir, you know." And he said, "These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
15 Therefore, they are before the throne of God and serve Him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them.
16 'Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them, nor any scorching heat.
17 For the Lamb at the center before the throne will be their shepherd; 'He will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.' "