Moving Forward

The passing of my grandmother last August 27 and then of my cousin last September 25, barely a month apart, have taken quite a toll on my family. It was a lot easier for us to let go of Mama Gran. She lived a full life and went home peacefully to the Creator. On the contrary, we are bogged down by so many questions about cousin, Gabby's passing. We each recalled his 9th day last Friday, Oct 3. I had prayers held at my house Friday afternoon and while I was doing that, my Mom and Tito Bem (Gabby's Dad) were at the US Embassy fixing his papers. He's a US citizen but has been here for a while trying to rebuild his life but was hoping he could leave right away to catch Gabby's vigil and funeral. Soon after praying for Gabby, I got a call from DH who told me that my Tito's papers were okayed and he was booked on the first Northwest flight out of Manila on Saturday. PRAYER ANSWERED! We were all resigned to the fact that he wouldn't be able to make it in time. But despite all the heartache about Gabby's unexpected passing, God was truly on top of things as HE saw to it that my Tito would be able to give his firstborn and only son a proper goodbye.

I just got a text from another cousin who drove all the way to SF from LA with other family members to attend the services for Gabby. They're all there to give Tito Bem the love and support he needs at this extremely difficult time. It was sad saying goodbye to him very early Saturday morning when my DF picked him up from my house to take him to the airport. But very comforting to know that he's not alone as he faces probably the most trying time of his life as he buries his child tomorrow, 1am Manila time. But that is where he wants to be right now and we can only be happy that he was given the opportunity to go.

Hard to do anything from thousands of miles away but I console myself with the fact that our family members in the States will do whatever it takes to try and make things a bit easier for him. I can only pray for strength and acceptance, not just for him but for the rest of us who are pained by the unexpected loss of a very young family member.

Thanks to everyone who offered messages of condolence and comforted us in our time of grief.