2011 a Year of Loss

My wife started her own blog this week and made a comment about mine, about the fact that I had not wrote anything in over a year. Well, so let me tell you about the past year.

It's been very rough, not to say there weren't good time unfortunately though when all is said and done 2011 will be remembered by the loved one that where lost more than those times.

On February 21st we began with the loss of Lisa's cousin Cody Cosby who passed away suddenly at the age of 23.Then in March my grandfather, Frank James fell while walking outside his home. The fall broke his hip and he was sent to the hospital. With the broken hip he was given 2 choices, live the rest of your life in pain and bedridden or take your chances and have surgery to fix it (This would be very risky due to my grandfathers chronic heart failure). He chose to chance it and have the surgery. The Hip surgery was a success however this begin a very trying 40 day period and Grandpa battled recovery, his heart issue, and his kidney's shutting down. In the end it was just too much for him and we moved him into a retirement home about 5 days before he passed away. On April 19th Grandpa Frankie held his daughter, my mom, Keta and my cousin, Carol Tuttle in his arms again

We had Grandpa's Funeral on Thursday April 21st the very next day we began to turn our focus on my Grandma Betty as she had stopped taking care of herself, primarily her Cancer, while we focused on Grandpa Frankie for the past month and a half. Grandma began another round of Chemotherapy that week. One week later on April 28th Grandma woke up in Chronic pain and we admitted her into the hospital. We spent 1 day in a regular room while trying to get the pain under control before Grandma became unresponsive and we where moved to ICU for a short time. A week later Grandma passed away.

With my grandpa and Grandma passing away and my mother having passed away in 2008, my sister are the sole beneficiaries of everything but even more than that it means that we had to take care of the estate, paperwork, death notices, going thought their home, and even having to demo their rent house due to it's condition. Over and over and over I have been reminded of 2011 being a year of loss.

As we have went though Grandpa and Grandma's home there are some great things that I will treasure. From Grandpa's high school class ring from 1940 Sapulpa High to the 5 Old Timer pocket knives and 4 zippo lighters that where scattered throughout the house. The greatest treasure has been the two bibles that now sit across from my desk every day on my book shelf a pink one with Betty James monogramed on the cover and a blue NIV with Frank James' name. Now grandma was was not one who wrote on the pages however I found a passage that was marked on 8-8-99 after hearing Bob Post speak (coincidently Rev. Bob Post also passed away this year too). The passage is Psalm 22.

Psalm 22 (For the director of music. To the tune of “The Doe of the Morning.” A psalm of David.)

¹ My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from my cries of anguish?
² My God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer, by night, but I find no rest.

³ Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One; you are the one Israel praises.
⁴ In you our ancestors put their trust; they trusted and you delivered them.
⁵ To you they cried out and were saved; in you they trusted and were not put to shame.

⁶ But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by everyone, despised by the people.
⁷ All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads.
⁸ “He trusts in the LORD,” they say, “let the LORD rescue him. Let him deliver him, since he delights in him.”

⁹ Yet you brought me out of the womb; you made me trust in you, even at my mother’s breast.
¹⁰ From birth I was cast on you; from my mother’s womb you have been my God.

¹¹ Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help.

¹² Many bulls surround me; strong bulls of Bashan encircle me. 1³ Roaring lions that tear their prey open their mouths wide against me.
¹⁴ I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart has turned to wax;
it has melted within me.
¹⁵ My mouth^[d] is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth; you lay me in the dust of death.

¹⁶ Dogs surround me, a pack of villains encircles me; they pierce^[e] my hands and my feet.
¹⁷ All my bones are on display; people stare and gloat over me.
¹⁸ They divide my clothes among them and cast lots for my garment.

¹⁹ But you, LORD, do not be far from me. You are my strength; come quickly to help me.
²⁰ Deliver me from the sword, my precious life from the power of the dogs.
²¹ Rescue me from the mouth of the lions; save me from the horns of the wild oxen.

²² I will declare your name to my people; in the assembly I will praise you.
²³ You who fear the LORD, praise him! All you descendants of Jacob, honor him! Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!
²⁴ For he has not despised or scorned the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help.

²⁵ From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly; before those who fear you I will fulfill my vows.
²⁶ The poor will eat and be satisfied; those who seek the LORD will praise him— may your hearts live forever!

²⁷ All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him,
²⁸ for dominion belongs to the LORD and he rules over the nations.

²⁹ All the rich of the earth will feast and worship; all who go down to the dust will kneel before him— those who cannot keep themselves alive.
³⁰ Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord.
³¹ They will proclaim his righteousness, declaring to a people yet unborn:
He has done it!