Well, night two that sleep will not be happening. Kaiden has also decided sleep is overrated as well, seeing how I put him to bed an hour and a half ago and he's still singing to himself. Better than crying I guess:)
Life is hard sometimes. We drove back home today from Hamilton just hours after my sweet Uncle Marvin passed away. It wasn't until a few hours later after we had unpacked, eaten dinner and sat down to watch Peter Pan for the 394th time that I realized how much I missed my family even though I had just left them. You know.....I don't like being so far away from them. Some people love the fact that they are hours away from their family and they rarely return home to visit. Not me. My family is my world. Being over 2.5 hours away is a driveable distance but also one that doesn't allow you to just pick up and leave at the drop of a hat.
Those that know me well know my family makeup. Over 45 cousins on my mothers side, 15 aunts and uncles...dads side isn't small either. And we are close. The kind of close where I can pick up the phone and call my aunts and ask where my mom is when she isn't answering and they will know immediately where she is day or night. The kind of close where my cousins know just when to call or text or get together with me to fill that void that comes with being a couple of hours away.
Now don't get me wrong. I love where I live. I have made the most amazing friends and have the best church family and can count on them without a doubt.
Marvin was a man of God. He spoke the truth, he preached the truth and you listened. Not in a way where you wanted to plug your ears or change the subject, but in a way where he understood you and exactly what you were going through. Even during his battle with cancer he was always worried about everone else. I remember how many times he told me he loved me while I went to see him in the hospital.
I hated seeing him in pain. The last time I was at his house I had to leave because I couldn't stop the tears. It was painful for him to talk yet he wanted to talk to my cousin John on the phone and sing happy birthday to him.
The memories of playing our annual Andrews volleyball games at the lake, hearing him sing sooooo beautifully to all of the hymns we would sing at night during the reunion, his sense of humor that no one could ever match and his care for everyone else is what I will miss the most.
The circle of life is a definite thing, sometimes accepting it just isn't very easy.
