When we lose a loved one, we suffer a loss. Not only a physical loss of being unable to see or touch them anymore… we also suffer an emotional loss. We no longer feel love from them… love that is in the present… a gift you receive upon being present with them. Their passing leaves a void which can only be filled with the memories we have of them. Memories that are wrapped in love and tied to HOPE.
Yes, the loss of a loved one is painful; punctuated with feelings of emptiness and sadness. We can fill that void with love and HOPE… thinking of all the things that our loved one said and did… things that makes us smile, smirk, and even laugh out loud. Recently, our family lost a great guy… my father-in-law. While Hugh is no longer with us, he leaves us with a legacy of love and HOPE… a legacy that is inspired by God’s love and bound by the HOPE only Jesus provides. I will fill the void his passing leaves with these memories… memories that fill me with endless love and wrap me in eternal HOPE:
· His greeting that made you feel you were the most important person in the room
· His dad (grandad) jokes
· The way he swung me around the dance floor
· His love for the color yellow
· The way he pronounced Albany (Al-bany)
· His love for Entenmann’s coffee cake and all things sweet
· The way he said pe-cans (p-cawns)
· His love for all things Scottish
· The bagpiper he invited to our wedding
· His traditional reading of A Charlie Brown’s Christmas
· Placing bows on his head while opening presents
· His passion for golf
I am grateful for these memories… the little things Hugh did that paint a portrait of his love for life and the love he had for his loved ones. It’s in the little things where we find God the most. When we focus on the little things, we find God’s love in ALL things. And when we find God in ALL things, we find HOPE in ALL things. HOPE that is centered on Jesus’ love for us and His overall sacrifice on the cross. An eternal sacrifice that enables us to love each other for eternity. An eternal reward for believing in Jesus and how He makes believers righteous in God’s eyes.
While I will miss Hugh’s huge hugs and overall goofiness, I will hold onto the life lessons he left. Hugh left a legacy of love to lean on and learn from. Yes, there will be days when I think of him and shed a tear, however, I know those tears will remind me of Hugh’s love and God’s HOPE. Through the tears is where I will rest in the HOPE that he lived each day to the fullest and loved like Jesus. God poured a bit of Himself into Hugh with love, the ability to see goodness in all things, and an abundant HOPE. It is my HOPE that I will take a piece of Hugh wherever I go and share with whoever I see. There is no doubt that Hugh’s legacy was a legacy of love and a lifetime of HOPE… from earth to eternity.