Christmas 2012 (Part 1--I think!)

Merry Christmas from our house to yours!

Clark Family Christmas 2012

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving Year!

It seems that November has been dubbed Thanksgiving Month, a 30 day period in which we are to share a daily expression of each of the things for which we are thankful in our lives. If that is the expectation, I'm afraid I failed miserably. I haven't even posted anything (other than Jon's "toast") since our son, Jeff, married his sweet Sarah back in June! Talk about a slacker--that's me with a capital "S"!

Mr. and Mrs. Jeff Clark
June 9, 2012

Since the beginning of the month, I've read the "Today I am thankful for..." posts (in blogs and on Facebook) from my friends and family and have been filled with a growing sense of guilt that I wasn't sharing my gratitude for the many, many blessings of my life--and anyone who knows me knows that my family and I have been blessed beyond measure! I have a husband who loves me in spite of (certainly not because of) my flaws and who has been my soft place to fall for the better part of 38 years, and I have four amazing adults who make me incredibly proud to be their mother, and two (soon to be three) spouses-in-love who honor me in loving my sons and daughter. I have a grandson who makes me smile on a daily basis! :) I have a young woman who loves me as her "Atlanta" Mom, a precious girl whose own mother was called Home several years ago; I often refer to her as my "daughter from another mother" and am truly blessed by her sweet spirit. I have three brothers, five sisters-in-love, and a brother-in-love with whom I share countless memories, some that still make me cry and some that make me laugh. I have nine nieces and nephews, many of them with spouses, and five great nieces and nephews. I have friends who hold me accountable and who, too, accept me in spite of my faults. I am so very blessed.


"Most" of the Clark/Shaw/Elliott Clan
Pre-wedding gathering June 2012

Captain Carson Reporting for Duty!
I always did love a cute fireman! ;)

Couldn't resist sharing this one!







Above all, I have a God who loves me unconditionally and without whom, I am nothing. The blessings of my life are not because of who I am, but because of who He is. He has walked with me in the valleys, and He has stood with me on the mountaintops, and never once deserted me. He has shown me over and over again how much He loves me and given me cause to believe in miracles. Because of Him, I know that no matter what happens in my life, I will still call myself blessed, not because of what I've done to deserve those blessings, but because He, above all others, loves me in spite of my shortcomings and because He WANTS to bless me! For that, I say "Happy Thanksgiving Year"--I pray I never grow complacent and that I keep an attitude of gratitude, not just in the month in which it's expected, but every day of the year.

May God bless you and yours always,
-Mary

1 Thessalonians 5:18

Who's the Best Man?

I missed the beginning, but wanted to share Jonathon's "Best Man" toast to Jeff and Sarah. Once again, his wit and genuine love for his twin shone through his sweet words. I'll post more later about the amazing weekend we shared celebrating Jeff and Sarah's nuptials, but for now, give a listen to our miracle, Jonathon.

Some Things You Just Can't Resist Sharing...

And trust me, I totally deserve one!

Easter Reflections

Happy Easter, All! Happy Easter, Y'all!

Today is "THE" reason why we embrace our Christian faith, the very essence of our belief. The birth of Jesus Christ and His ultimate death by crucifixion are key to our faith, but the resurrection is the most significant event that sets us apart from other religions. Through Christ's death and resurrection, we see the promise fulfilled. As our pastor said a couple of years ago at an Easter service, "Christmas is the promise; Easter is the proof!" Jesus suffered death upon the cross to pay for our sins and by his resurrection, we are promised eternal life with Him. Therefore, we joyfully exclaim, "Hallelujah! Christ is risen!"

Easter holds another significance for our family as well. As many of you know, Easter of 2005 fell just two weeks after Jonathon's hospitalization at Grady. The date was March 27, to be exact. In that two week period we experienced some intense lows and well as some profound highs, but in an effort to maintain as much normalcy as possible, our sweet families descended on the ICU waiting room with a traditional Shaw/Clark feast so that we could at least be together on this most holy of Christian celebrations. We were (and still are) overwhelmed at their thoughtfulness and love in wanting to share the day with us as we had done so many Easters prior. In true Southern fashion, there was enough food to feed the entire waiting room, and in equally true Southern hospitality (who doesn't love that about the South?), anyone and everyone who was there on that day in 2005 was invited to join us. In the midst of so many unknowns, one thing was clear: we were family and together, we would get through anything. Since then, we've been tested and while the outcome hasn't always been what we would have desired, we've had to trust in our Lord and affirm that when one of us feels too weak to carry on, we have a loving family support system to gently urge us along. As difficult as it gets, we know without question that we are not alone.

From that selfless act by our families on Easter of 2005, we determined that we would "pay it forward" to those who find themselves sitting in the ICU waiting room at Grady on Easter Sunday. While our offering is meager compared to the elaborate spread that we shared in March of '05, our intent is to let those family members know that they are not forgotten--that we understand what it is like to be spending their Easter in a less-than-cozy hospital waiting room. For the past seven years, we've taken gift bags filled with snacks, personal care items, notebooks, activity books, etc. as tokens of our concerns. (We were actually out of town last year on Easter, so made our trip on Mother's Day instead.) Although I admit that even after this many years, I feel a small sense of appreciation as we pull out of the driveway to take our gift bags, we ALWAYS return home with a great sense of joy at having shared a few moments of our lives simply listening to those we meet there. Today was no different.

After a beautiful church service this morning, David, Jon, and I returned home to assemble the bags and make our trip. Knowing how many bags to make is always a guessing game, but as is so like God and His perfect provision, we seem to always have enough! This year, we took 15 bags and guess what? It was a perfect number! (After delivering the bags and sharing stories with the families in the waiting room, we had ONE bag left and decided that it would be just perfect for the little man who sat at the Information desk. You should have seen his face light up! It was really cute that he got so excited over such a small token.) The patient stories we've heard over the years have ranged from automobile/motorcycle accidents to gunshot wounds to brain injuries and strokes to heart attacks. Ironically, each of the stories we heard today had something to do with head trauma, brain injury, or stroke, with patient ages ranging from 37 upward. The common thread among them all is that no matter what circumstance brought their loved one to Grady, they are all praying for a miracle. What we've learned, too, is that everybody has a story. They just want it to be heard and know that someone, somewhere cares and that, above all else, there is hope. We try to convey to them that while we don't know WHY things happen, we believe in the power of prayer and will be praying for their loved one (and for them). Having Jon with us is proof that miracles happen and offers such encouragement to these precious families. We never want to offer false hope, but what we DO want to offer is encouragement and yes, hope--hope that no matter what their journey brings, they, too, will get through it. Won't you take a moment each day to praise God for the miracles in your life and ask His presence and healing for those in need? You will be blessed beyond measure.

"As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." - Joshua 24:15

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." - Jeremiah 29:11

Happy St. Patty's Day, Everyone!

AN IRISH PRAYER

May God give you...
For every storm, a rainbow,
For every tear, a smile,
For every care, a promise,
And a blessing in each trial.
For every problem life sends,
A faithful friend to share,
For every sigh, a sweet song,
And an answer for each prayer.

Let the party begin!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

St. Patrick's Day 2012: Facts, Myths, and Traditions

Pretty interesting article from National Geographic:
St. Patrick's Day 2012: Facts, Myths, and Traditions

The Lucky (and Very Blessed) Seven

Once upon a time, I started a blog, a blog that I later moved and have subsequently neglected--it's been almost four months since I've posted anything at all to it. Today, I'm going to try (AGAIN) to get back on track and commit to this cyber recording of moments I want to always remember. In actuality, the blog was started FOR us by someone I barely knew (but who has since become a dear friend--thank you so much, Mickey) so that we could post updates regarding Jonathon's progress as he struggled to recover from a life-threatening ruptured brain aneurysm, and I (along with Blair and Jeff) did a good job for a really long time at keeping it updated for our family and friends. The prognosis at the time was incredibly bleak--we were told that it was so serious that he would likely not survive, and that even if he did somehow manage to live, he would exist in a vegetative state--but we prayed that God would spare our Jonathon and restore him to our family. I think we also believed that by sharing his story and enlisting an army of prayer warriors on his behalf, God would indeed hear us and answer our prayers. Well, friends, it's been SEVEN years ago today since we received that gut-wrenching news, and I owe God ALL of the glory for the amazing things that He has done in Jonathon's life as well as in each of our lives! I can hardly believe it when I look at the date and recall where we were at this time in 2005. We had been called shortly after 8:00 that morning and told that Jon had experienced what appeared to be a seizure while chaperoning a youth group trip near Jasper, Georgia, and that he was being taken to a nearby hospital. Within less than 30 minutes, we were told that his situation was so severe that he would be airlifted to Grady Hospital in Atlanta. With that news, we knew that his condition was grave. What we didn't know was just how grave or how long it would be before the word "normal" would again become part of our vocabulary. The journey toward "normal" has taken us through valleys and put us on top of mountains. We've cried rivers of tears and we've laughed uncontrollably; we've been fearful and we've been brave. We've survived, and we've realized how very, very blessed we are.

Although Jonathon's recovery and progress is always at the forefront of our thoughts and prayers, the past seven years have brought with them many other changes for the Clark family. Our oldest son, Taylor, got married five years ago and each of the siblings was part of the wedding party. As I wrote at the time, I'm not sure which sight was more beautiful--the bride or Jon as he slowly but surely made his way WALKING down the aisle, something he worked hard to do from the moment Taylor and Portia got engaged. Adding to the beauty of their marriage, Taylor and his beautiful wife, Portia, gave us our first grandchild, Carson, nearly two years ago. Can you imagine how amazing it is for us to see Jonathon as "Uncle Jon"? Check it out for yourself! Have you ever seen anything sweeter? Uncle Jon loves his Carson, and Carson loves his Uncle Jon! My dad would have called it a "mutual admiration society"!

Also in these seven years, our daughter, Blair, followed her heart and moved to New York City where she met (actually re-connected with him since she actually met him in 7th grade) and fell in love with her boyfriend, Ron. I guess you could say she not only followed her heart, she found it!(Another mutual admiration society!) And would you believe it? Ron was actually on a baseball team with Jeff when they were younger!

Speaking of Jeff...in the years since Jon's aneurysm, he also met (another re-connection since they actually have known each other since kindergarten) and fell in love with his now-fiancee, Sarah. The wedding date is June 9 of this year and Jon is the Best Man! (When Jeff told me that he was going to ask Jon to be his Best Man, he said "Mom, I've always known that Jon would be my Best Man! I was BORN with a Best Man!" Oh, how I love that!) AND...Blair is the Maid of Honor! Taylor and Portia are also in the wedding so we get another opportunity to see all our "children" in the same wedding! How very blessed we are!

Yes, the Clarks have seen many changes over the past seven years, and although our lives are far from perfect and Jonathon's recovery has not been without its struggles and setbacks, we've realized that blessings come in many ways and that sometimes you just have to shift your focus for a bit in order to see things more clearly.

"And though my heart is torn, I will praise You in this storm" - Praise You in This Storm (Casting Crowns)

"give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus" - 1 Thessalonians 5:18