Yes. Come.
Those were the words I texted back in response to this message last night:
Hey my friend. I want you to be completely honest with me right now. Several of us want to come see you....we considered surprising you, but felt you'd want to know. We would stay at a hotel. We could watchkids for you and Doug to get away, we would clean, cook, whisk you away, whatever would be best....
These are friends that live far away. That have busy lives with high needs kids. This would be a sacrifice of their time and their money and a strain on their families. I factored all that in for a fraction of a second - then said:
Yes. Come.
We need community. We need "in real life" people to come. We need to admit that this is not a weakness or a flaw or a personal failure but a God ordained and created need. It's time to stop subsituting activities and schedules and social media for relationships - not for our sake, but for our children's.
When I told my 12 year old daughter these ladies were coming she said "but mom - they are making a big deal and it's hard on their families". Yes dear - both of those are true. Cancer is a big deal. Divorce is a big deal. Disappointment and death and hurt are BIG DEALS! Yes, this will be hard on their kids for the days they are gone.
I got to sit with my girl and explain to her that God created us to be in community and that sometimes, showing up and sitting matters. More than anything we need to not be alone in our pain and hardship. We need to be modeling this for our children. We need to be pointing them to "IRL" relationships instead of screen connections that aren't real - and maybe even dangerous.
Yes. Come.
We also need to recgonize that when we sit with someone in pain, when we show up, we are literally being the hands and feet of Christ. Jesus showed up. We need to show up - not just for an hour, but for the "long haul" of addiction, of disease, of prodigal children, of families separated, of racial injustice. Of Brokeness.
Yes. Go.
It occurred to Pooh and Piglet that they hadn't heard from Eeyore for several days, so they put on their hats and coats and trotted across the Hundred Acre Wood to Eeyore's stick house. Inside the house was Eeyore.
"Hello Eeyore," said Pooh.
"Hello Pooh. Hello Piglet," said Eeyore, in a Glum Sounding Voice.
"We just thought we'd check in on you," said Piglet, "because we hadn't heard from you, and so we wanted to know if you were okay."
Eeyore was silent for a moment. "Am I okay?" he asked, eventually. "Well, I don't know, to be honest. Are any of us really okay? That's what I ask myself. All I can tell you, Pooh and Piglet, is that right now I feel really rather Sad, and Alone, and Not Much Fun To Be Around At All. Which is why I haven't bothered you. Because you wouldn't want to waste your time hanging out with someone who is Sad, and Alone, and Not Much Fun To Be Around At All, would you now."
Pooh looked and Piglet, and Piglet looked at Pooh, and they both sat down, one on either side of Eeyore in his stick house.
Eeyore looked at them in surprise. "What are you doing?"
"We're sitting here with you," said Pooh, "because we are your friends. And true friends don't care if someone is feeling Sad, or Alone, or Not Much Fun To Be Around At All. True friends are there for you anyway. And so here we are."
"Oh," said Eeyore. "Oh." And the three of them sat there in silence, and while Pooh and Piglet said nothing at all; somehow, almost imperceptibly, Eeyore started to feel a very tiny little bit better.
Because Pooh and Piglet were There. No more; no less.
Author unknown
Yes. GO!
