Heavy Matters
The past few weeks have brought news of sadness on several fronts. I'll start with the most recent.
Friday was the local wedding of Sara Y. and Reuben M. Sara's parents, Marvin and Rhoda, come to our church. On the morning of the afternoon wedding, Marvin's father died in a buggy-semi accident in the Bloomfield, Iowa area. The wedding went forward, mostly as planned, and Marvin and Rhoda left for the funeral the next morning.
The fatal accident happened in spite of the semi driver seemingly having exercised appropriate caution when he first approached the buggy from behind. He slowed down, and then passed the buggy. Unfortunately, as he was doing so, the horse abruptly turned left in front of the semi. The horse had reached a driveway where he was accustomed to entering--the sale barn, I believe.
Great joy and sorrow in the same day--I guess that's how life often is. We don't get to put the rest of life on hold while a crisis unfolds.
**************
Last Wed. eve. after church, my sister-in-law Judy told me about news they had gotten recently from her sister Lois' family. Lois' husband, Joseph, had a younger brother Daniel who has struggled in the past with mental illness. He has also made some very poor choices, and at times has been incarcerated.
The family lived in Honduras when the children were young, and Daniel stayed there after most of the family moved to the States.
The American Embassy in Honduras, in a phone call to Joseph, very recently informed him that his brother was deceased. His body had arrived in a morgue on September 6. No identification was possible immediately. He had been shot in gang violence, and his facial features could not be used as identification. After painstaking effort, his fingerprints and an old bullet lodged in his leg provided identification, and his US relatives were located.
When Judy talked to me, Daniel's siblings were en route to Honduras (one or both parents are deceased). I'm praying for comfort for that sorrowing family.
Linda, Carol, Marian Y, and I were overnight guests in their home in Honduras some time in the mid-seventies. The rest of us had gone to visit Carol when she was working in the orphanage in El Salvador, and we traveled to several other Central American countries together. I still remember the Peachy family's warm, quiet welcome . . .
**************
Closer home, our friends, Calvin and Andrea N. are living what must be a nightmare of uncertainty regarding their oldest son. Almost two weeks ago, Matthew (20) went alone on a one-day hike in the Swiss Alps, and never returned. Intense searching has yielded no clue about what prevented his return. After the first number of days, the Swiss army ceased searching, believing that he could not have survived the intense cold that followed his disappearance. Matthew having disappeared intentionally seems unlikely, but I don't suppose anyone would blame his family for finding that one of the most hopeful prospects, at this point.
Matthew had gone to live in Switzerland for a year. He was staying with his grandparents who are citizens there. When news of his disappearance came, his mother flew "home," and she and her family there helped search. They kept on after the army gave up.
I didn't know Matthew well personally, although I remember hearing charming confusions of smart sentences when he was a toddler juggling the three languages he was learning at home--Swiss, Pennsylvania Dutch, and English. His mother also knows German and French. Calvin and Andrea's children grew up on a dairy farm across the field from Pilgrim High School where I've been teaching. Matthew participated in the gifted program in the public school where he attended.
Calvin's parental family was part of our church. Their family of 15 children and our family of 12 had many age mates between Carol and Darlene in their family and Linda and Lois in ours. Our genealogy is tangled in about three different strands--Miller, Nisly, and Beachy.
Many prayers ascend for Calvin and Andrea's family too.
****************
I hope to write next about less heavy matters.
Friday was the local wedding of Sara Y. and Reuben M. Sara's parents, Marvin and Rhoda, come to our church. On the morning of the afternoon wedding, Marvin's father died in a buggy-semi accident in the Bloomfield, Iowa area. The wedding went forward, mostly as planned, and Marvin and Rhoda left for the funeral the next morning.
The fatal accident happened in spite of the semi driver seemingly having exercised appropriate caution when he first approached the buggy from behind. He slowed down, and then passed the buggy. Unfortunately, as he was doing so, the horse abruptly turned left in front of the semi. The horse had reached a driveway where he was accustomed to entering--the sale barn, I believe.
Great joy and sorrow in the same day--I guess that's how life often is. We don't get to put the rest of life on hold while a crisis unfolds.
**************
Last Wed. eve. after church, my sister-in-law Judy told me about news they had gotten recently from her sister Lois' family. Lois' husband, Joseph, had a younger brother Daniel who has struggled in the past with mental illness. He has also made some very poor choices, and at times has been incarcerated.
The family lived in Honduras when the children were young, and Daniel stayed there after most of the family moved to the States.
The American Embassy in Honduras, in a phone call to Joseph, very recently informed him that his brother was deceased. His body had arrived in a morgue on September 6. No identification was possible immediately. He had been shot in gang violence, and his facial features could not be used as identification. After painstaking effort, his fingerprints and an old bullet lodged in his leg provided identification, and his US relatives were located.
When Judy talked to me, Daniel's siblings were en route to Honduras (one or both parents are deceased). I'm praying for comfort for that sorrowing family.
Linda, Carol, Marian Y, and I were overnight guests in their home in Honduras some time in the mid-seventies. The rest of us had gone to visit Carol when she was working in the orphanage in El Salvador, and we traveled to several other Central American countries together. I still remember the Peachy family's warm, quiet welcome . . .
**************
Closer home, our friends, Calvin and Andrea N. are living what must be a nightmare of uncertainty regarding their oldest son. Almost two weeks ago, Matthew (20) went alone on a one-day hike in the Swiss Alps, and never returned. Intense searching has yielded no clue about what prevented his return. After the first number of days, the Swiss army ceased searching, believing that he could not have survived the intense cold that followed his disappearance. Matthew having disappeared intentionally seems unlikely, but I don't suppose anyone would blame his family for finding that one of the most hopeful prospects, at this point.
Matthew had gone to live in Switzerland for a year. He was staying with his grandparents who are citizens there. When news of his disappearance came, his mother flew "home," and she and her family there helped search. They kept on after the army gave up.
I didn't know Matthew well personally, although I remember hearing charming confusions of smart sentences when he was a toddler juggling the three languages he was learning at home--Swiss, Pennsylvania Dutch, and English. His mother also knows German and French. Calvin and Andrea's children grew up on a dairy farm across the field from Pilgrim High School where I've been teaching. Matthew participated in the gifted program in the public school where he attended.
Calvin's parental family was part of our church. Their family of 15 children and our family of 12 had many age mates between Carol and Darlene in their family and Linda and Lois in ours. Our genealogy is tangled in about three different strands--Miller, Nisly, and Beachy.
Many prayers ascend for Calvin and Andrea's family too.
****************
I hope to write next about less heavy matters.
posted by Mrs. I (Miriam Iwashige) at
4:45 PM
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