The Virtue Series: Courage
My husband and I had just arrived at a memorial service for our grandchildren’s great aunt, Joan, who had recently passed away. The three boys had grown close to this special lady, and it was one of the first times that someone so close to them had died.
As we made our way through the crowd, we saw our oldest grandson, Kyle. As soon as I caught his eye, he ran up and gave us a big hug. “How are you?” I asked. “Okay,” he replied somberly. Kyle led us over to the table where his other set of grandparents were sitting.
“I am giving a talk about Joan,” Kyle announced. “That’s wonderful,” I replied. “She has been an important person in your life.” He nodded and listened carefully while the adults around him conversed about Joan’s life and illness.
The conversation paused for a moment; I looked around but didn’t see Kyle. Then I heard the quiet sobs coming from under the table. As I lifted the tablecloth, I could see that he had slipped under the table. My heart sank. I began to pray, “Lord, please wrap my grandson in your reassuring love.”
Without thinking, in a dress and heels, I dropped under the table and sat next to him on the ground. I remember thinking, “I can’t believe I just did this; I hope I can get back up,” but Kyle simply looked at me and put his head on my shoulder as though he had been expecting me.
For a few moments, we simply sat there together in silence.
“I’m not sure I can talk about her in front of people,” he said through his tears. “But I want to.”
“What did you want to say?” I asked. He went on to tell me two wonderful stories that expressed how much joy and love Joan had brought into his life.
We continued to sit in silence. I could hear my husband quietly tell people that Kyle and I hadn’t disappeared, we were simply taking a short break.
Finally, I broke the silence. “When I’m not sure if I can do something, I ask God to help me.”
“We could try,” he responded after thinking it over.
“God, fill us with your love and give us your courage and strength as we celebrate Joan,” I prayed. We finished our prayer with a hug.
“I think I can talk about her now,” Kyle said.
Kyle gave a beautiful talk about his great aunt.
I knew God was the source of his courage that day. Later, I told Kyle how much that day had meant to me and how much I had learned from him. “You reminded me that God will provide the courage to get through difficult things.”
“Sometimes you have to look under a table to find it,” Kyle said with a smile. Next time, we will know where to look!
Beth McNamara is on the board of Grandly Missions.