I took a trip down memory lane yesterday. The trip was initiated by an email from Tina about one of our friends and their special needs child. This took me back 15 or 20 years to another special needs child that was in our life. Her name was Kathryn, and she must have been somewhere around 5 years old. I can’t say I knew her well, but we worked with her about once a month during children’s chapel. She required a little extra attention. For instance, if you wanted her to sit down, you had to lead her to her seat. She always insisted on holding on to your hand when moving from one place to another. She was not verbal at all. She could make sounds, and interpreting these sounds into what she wanted became easier the more you got to know her. Kathryn always had a smile and a hug for anyone who was willing to be loved.
Kathryn’s life on earth ended somewhere around that time. She may have been as old as seven years old, I don’t remember exactly. Her earthly body was just not created to last that many years. What I do remember is her funeral. Our pastor, Brother Ken, officiated at her services. For those of you who don’t know Brother Ken, let me give you a brief biography. At the time of this funeral, he had been pastor of this church for somewhere around 35 years (It’s been over 50 now). He is an incredible man. He had served as chaplain of the police department and fire department in this metropolitan area. He had also served as chaplain for the Texas Highway patrol. All this as well as being pastor of this church with somewhere around 500 attending at the time. I mention this to point out that Brother Ken had seen a lot of tragedy. He had stood beside families who had lost loved ones way too early in life, sometimes multiple family members. I’ll let you think through what all kinds of things this man may have experienced in these roles for 35 years.
But I watched him at Kathryn’s funeral. I remember the tears streaming down the cheeks of this man who had always shown strength while showing compassion at the same time. Yet now emotion overtook him. Through the tears, while choking back the nearly uncontrollable sobs, he spoke of how he had learned so much from Kathryn. Kathryn had taught him about love. Specifically, he had learned from her what unconditional love meant, the same love that our God has for us. I am still learning this lesson, as I remember this young girl. I’m not sure what Kathryn’s new heavenly body is like. I’m sure it’s perfect, and I wonder what it might be like. I have seen perfect love, through Jesus, and an example of that through a young girl who touched so many lives simply by having, showing, and giving unconditional love.
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2 comments:
Thanks for taking me down memory lane, Tim. Kathryn was a true joy, wasn't she? I remember singing Jesus Loves Me at the service and I remember hearing her sing it, in her way. I had the priviledge of working with her, as her Music Therapist for a while. She was a hoot! Her smile was contagious, and those thick glasses afforded her with vision, but you had to wonder how. What a wonderful memory to share. Thanks, again. Happy Saturday, my friend. ~Mindy
First of all, thanks for the kind words about the lizard picture on my blog.
Mindy and I enjoyed a good sermon on Sunday about love and so reading this today feels timely. Thanks for sharing a glimpse of Kathryn. In reading your blog, it occurred to me that, all these years later, her short life is still testifying to the love of Jesus.
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