Awe

Cherry amazes me, especially in her role as the mother of Carli and Whitney.  Cherry’s ability to weather, survive, tolerate, endure, and even thrive through the midst of the “privilege” and “challenge” of bringing two daughters into the world through their teen years is beyond my ability to comprehend.  It would be one thing to observe this ability in a single event; the true reality is that this began in childbirth and has continued and even expanded through their teenage years.  This isn’t a negative comment about either Carli or Whitney.  They are going through the angst most if not all teenagers across many generations go through in life.  It is a comment of respect, awe, and deep admiration in her ability to love in and through it all.
 
The fact is that “when a woman gives birth, she has a hard time, there's no getting around it.  But when the baby is born, there is joy in the birth.  This new life in the world wipes out memory of the pain.” (John 16.21)  What is left is a forward looking focus on the beauty and love represented and realized in this new child.  As I watch Cherry’s reactions and expressions in good circumstances and bad I find encouragement and hope in the depth of her unconditional love.
 
I find myself wondering about the process.  Is this a mini-documentary on the love God has for each as our parent?  Could this be the metaphor we need to hold onto as we struggle in our relationships with each other?  Will this be the enduring example of what it means to unconditionally love another? 
 
It is easy to find the flaws we carry in our uniqueness.  We are all human, far more than we realize.  Yet in the midst of it all I see an enduring love that cannot be extinguished.  Mothers of many different walks model this in a way that can teach us how to treat and respond to each other.  The question today is simply will we live and learn; experience and share.  Priceless aspirations.