Character Confession: Even Still, I Felt Peace

It’s a late start but here is my Character Confession for the week.

One week a year I take the kids and return to my birthtown where my family still resides. This year the trip has been easy as the kids are older and we know the route well enough we have the breaks down to a bare minimum.

I travel not just to visit family and friends but to deliver a scholarship presentation during a tech school graduation. The scholarship is one my mom created in memory of my dad who passed away in 2004. My only job is to give the speech.  The first years were near impossible because dad’s death was so raw.

The trip took weeks to emotionally get out of my system. Missing my family and friends. Feeling guilty for moving 300 miles away when they needed me most. Memories of not just my dad’s passing but our daughter was very ill. I was separated from my husband for months while he worked in Pennsylvania and tried to buy a house in nearby Ohio. I was on top of those things trying to sell our house in NY.

There was no peace.

This year is different. Maybe time, maybe more prayer coverage but I feel a peace. The first morning it was hot enough to have open windows even at dawn. The birds sang and sang and it was fun to just listen. We’ve done family events so far and it’s been fun to drive and see the rolling hills and with family, the rolling laughter. There is still business to take care of and all the driving takes a physical toll but this so far has been a good trip.

Minutes ago we watched the rains pour and the rare Upstate NY tornado warning come through.

And even still, I felt peace.

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