In December 2018 I flew from St. Vincent to Miami, and then from Miami to Richmond. There mom and dad waited with my brother and his family (balloons in hand) to welcome Uncle John home.
Thus began two-weeks of memory making over Christmas, and the New-Year.
I did enjoy my time there, but as usual after the first week, my mind started to drift towards Saint Vincent. There’s nothing wrong with this of course since SVG is the place God has called me to, but being in Saint Vincent mentally and America physically at the same time meant I wasn’t fully present at times.
If I knew then what I know now….I would cherished every moment.
In God’s sovereign plan I wouldn’t return to the States till July 2021 two and a half years later!
Though grateful for the time together, I learned a painful lesson
Memories cannot be rushed
We can become distracted and push through to other things, but part of the beauty in memories is they are taken in slowly. We enjoy and savor every moment of them because soon life will become hectic again.
Memories are precious things. They can easily slip through our fingers if we aren’t careful.
I learned my lesson in 2018 and now embrace ministry-making time as the precious experience it is. There were many opportunities to slow down and enjoy being with family during my trip home in 2021. And I thankfully took full advantage of every one.
Johnhwilburn.org 