I heard about a mother, a bystander, and the mother's toddler being drowned in a horrible river incident yesterday, and I just haven't been myself since.
These individuals are strangers to me, and yet I have felt so much heartache for their loved ones and even the mother as she saw her little girl get swept away. I thought about how I'd have jumped straight into the raging water too no matter the odds. I can't imagine not jumping in after my child.
Maybe that's romanticizing it, but that's what I think I'd do in a split second decision.
That said, I was doing a search to learn more about it, and I realized that there was another river drowning with a little boy not too long ago, and the mother didn't even have the chance to make that choice. She just saw the river and knew she'd never see her son again.
As I ponder these two scenarios, I realize that we are given what we are given, and we just do what we can with what we've got. Sometimes giving our life is giving our all. And sometimes—our heart goes down river never to be seen again.
We just keep going until we can't anymore and find the joy in life. We give our whole hearts in all we do.
But even still—life can be such a heart wrenching affair, can't it?
These individuals are strangers to me, and yet I have felt so much heartache for their loved ones and even the mother as she saw her little girl get swept away. I thought about how I'd have jumped straight into the raging water too no matter the odds. I can't imagine not jumping in after my child.
Maybe that's romanticizing it, but that's what I think I'd do in a split second decision.
That said, I was doing a search to learn more about it, and I realized that there was another river drowning with a little boy not too long ago, and the mother didn't even have the chance to make that choice. She just saw the river and knew she'd never see her son again.
As I ponder these two scenarios, I realize that we are given what we are given, and we just do what we can with what we've got. Sometimes giving our life is giving our all. And sometimes—our heart goes down river never to be seen again.
We just keep going until we can't anymore and find the joy in life. We give our whole hearts in all we do.
But even still—life can be such a heart wrenching affair, can't it?
There are so many ups and downs in our lives, you are right. Your last few lines are so powerful. The one about our hearts going down river is sticking with me.
ReplyDeleteWhat happens to strangers, to acquaintances, to friends, to family members affects us... so often we know tragedy could befall us just the same. As you said, we are given what we are given and do the best we can. Often it is blessings we (or they) receive instead of tragedy.
ReplyDelete