Trade these Ashes in for Beauty
"....and provide for those who grieve in Zion-- to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor." Isaiah 61:3 If I think about it long enough, I can almost see her smile, I can almost hear her laugh, almost feel her near. Almost. Oh how she loved to laugh, and make other people laugh. But one day that all faded away. My mother passed away 16 years ago. I am now twice the age I was when I lost her. But a part of me does not feel older at all, because a part of me died with her that day. Somehow stuck in that moment...that defining moment, trying to find the purpose behind the pain. Before long emotions I didn't even know the full meaning of began to creep in. Bitterness, anger, jealousy, resentment, fear and anxiety. And sadness. Deep sadness a
