Christmas Season

I really love this time of year. Maybe it’s part nostalgia for Christmases of childhood. Or it’s the excitement of seeing family.  Or the message that Christmas brings. But this year was a bit harder. One part of the missionary life that has never gotten easier, and maybe has even gotten harder over time, is being away from family. November was a busy month with Isabella’s 15th birthday (can you believe that?!?!?), and I spent some time traveling for work. Last month, I was in the Dominican Republic at a conference when my mom texted that she was taking my dad to the ER for chest pains. Not to sound callous here, but my dad, unfortunately, spends a good bit of time in the ER, so I wasn’t especially worried at first. Until messages continued to come through about him being transferred to a bigger hospital, the testing showed a complete blockage in one of his arteries. And then that surgery was scheduled, but it was going to be a difficult area, so they were waiting for a specialist. I tried to find a flight out of the DR, but none got me to Texas in time for the surgery. So I sat by phone trying to be “present” with my family from thousands of miles away. And it sucked. 

Over Christmas break, the hospital called and said my dad’s pacemaker had stopped, and he needed to get a replacement in the next couple of days. Thankfully, I got to be there for that one, and he is doing well. And then later that day, I had to say goodbye to my parents and my kids. And it was hard all over again. I know many of you have been in that same place, of having to say goodbye to family. While I do still dearly love Christmas, this one hit a bit different with some sadness and thankfulness all rolled in together.