The Passing of Steve's Mom

From looking at the children's sizes/ages, I would guess that this picture was made on Easter Sunday in 1982 or 1983. It was always our habit to keep the kids dressed up after church until we could drive from Hartselle to Grannie and Granddaddy's house on 8th Ave. in Decatur and make some pictures. Then, we'd change clothes, enjoy Grannie's much-anticipated lunch, and Granddaddy would hide Easter eggs for the kids over and over again.

Steve's dad, Elton Pearson, died at the age of 73 in a boating accident while fishing in the Tennessee River -- his very favorite past-time -- on October 30, 1997. His mom, Mary Nell Pearson, died at the age of 86 in Baptist East Hospital in Montgomery on July 27, 2011, from complications due to congestive heart failure.

2011 was a miserable year for Grannie. She fractured a vertebra in her back on two separate occasions, both causing intense pain and requiring surgical procedures. She was also hospitalized with bronchitis and heart/anxiety issues on several occasions. In less than seven months, she went from a 2-bedroom independent living apartment to 1 room in an assisted living place then to a nursing home/rehabilitation facility. She was tired of fighting pain and illness and was ready to die, in both a physical sense and a spiritual one.

Her five grandchildren conducted the funeral service. They all shared favorite memories of their Grannie. Jon David gave the eulogy, Jenny and Julie shared Scripture passages, Laura played the piano, and Matt gave the message. I can't imagine anything that would have pleased her more. Although they witnessed some of Grannie's suffering and unhappiness in her final years, they had much to share about the Grannie that was so much a part of their growing years.

As her obituary stated, Mrs. Pearson was very smart -- making a 4.0 in Medical Records at Calhoun AFTER her boys had graduated from Auburn. Mrs. Pearson was a phenomenal cook -- as anyone who ever tasted her food could attest. And, she was a devoted student of the Bible, having taken part in many Community Bible Study series, as well as Kay Arthur and David Jeremiah studies.

But, her grandchildren remembered other things. One year she made life-size stuffed tigers for the boys and life-size stuffed dolls for the girls for Christmas. She must have worked for months and months on those and had to hide the evidence every time we went to visit. :) Jon David mentioned a great cake she made for his birthday. It was in the shape of a flower pot, complete with dirt (Oreo crumbs) and gummy worms. When we were planning the menu for Matt's rehearsal dinner when he was getting married, he requested Grannie's chocolate pie to be the dessert. So, she made 10 of them for the occasion.

We laughed remembering that she was visiting us at Cedar Cove one time and was using a walker because of a broken ankle. We were out in the front yard looking at the pond, and someone noticed a snake in the grass. The next thing we knew, Grannie was up on the porch, and her walker was still in the yard. :) We teased her unmercifully about that.

Steve remembers coming home from school on a Halloween afternoon crying because he had forgotten that his Boy Scout troop was having a costume contest. Grannie quickly put her creative talents to work and whipped up a scarecrow outfit for him. He ended up winning First Place!!!

Grannie made the tenderest pot roast I've even eaten, but that is such a small thing in comparison to the job she did of raising a wonderful son who became my husband. I will always be grateful to her for that.

I had never been in the room when someone took their last breath until a few weeks ago. In God's providence, Steve and I were in Montgomery when Grannie died. We knew she probably had only a few months to perhaps a year left to live, but we weren't expecting the end to come on that day. Nevertheless, God arranged for us to be there. Steve was holding her hand as her breaths became shallower and farther apart. Her eyes fluttered open in the last minutes. I couldn't help but wonder if she might already be glimpsing heaven. The end was very peaceful and quiet.

I thank God for her life and her legacy.

Proverbs 31:28-31 "Her children rise up and bless her; her husband also, and he praises her, saying: 'Many daughters have done nobly, but you excel them all.' Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised. Give her the product of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates."

A Clumsy Cast Can Still Produce a Great Catch

Look at this face of a very happy man. If Steve can't be hugging on grand kids, then at least put him in a boat on a sunny summer day when the willow flies are out, and watch the contentment glow out of him. On this particular day, he was in the boat WITH 5 grand kids. Supreme happiness in his book. :)

My husband has many amazing skills, some well-known, some not-so-well-known. Most people know that he's a good veterinarian. He has a great sense about what is wrong with an animal and knows how to use diagnostic tools to get answers. But, I think his clients appreciate him even more for his consistent integrity and honesty in dealing with them and their pets.

Some more personal skills are his thinking/reasoning/dispensing of wisdom to his children and to me. And, one of his talents that I get to enjoy most is his ability to cook a great breakfast.

Over this past weekend, though, I was able to observe (again) two of his great abilities that are like viewing great works of art when you see him in action. One was on Sunday morning when he was teaching a Bible lesson to our Sunday School class. It is awesome to watch and experience a person who is so obviously caught up in using their spiritual gift. His smooth delivery, his style, his knowledge (produced from study and insight), and his approachability are all apparent when he's in his element. I love seeing him AND hearing him teach.

The other great skill that I observed was on a recent late afternoon fishing trip when I decided to join him. Sadly, I don't do this often enough. I figure that's "his thing," and I'll just stay home and do "my thing." I'm so glad I went this time. Watching him cast his rod with uncanny accuracy is really a thing of beauty -- meant in the most masculine terms, of course. It shouldn't be a surprise. After all, he's been honing this skill for well over 50 years, but still I love to watch the expert at work. He knows how to place each lure in precisely the best spot for attracting that unsuspecting bass.

He handed me a rod and reel that he said was simple enough, "even the grandchildren used it during Cousins Camp," and gave me a few, hurried instructions. My casts were clumsy, jerky, short, inaccurate. But, hey, I got my bait in the water and felt several definite nibbles.

As you might expect, that led me to a spiritual correlation. So often, my witnessing attempts are like those casts. I don't always use the "right words." I seldom follow the methods or scripts that I've been taught. I just try to be faithful to "get my bait in the water" and trust the Holy Spirit to produce a great catch. I'm never going to catch a fish by staying home, now am I? I need to spend more time out where the fish are and continue to learn the best baits to use for certain fish and the right casting motions to use to get my bait in front of the hungry fish. My witnessing and my fishing can improve with practice. My husband will be pleased if I go fishing with him more often. My Savior will be pleased if I share more boldly and more often of His love and saving power.

John 21: 5-6, 11 "Jesus therefore said to them, 'Children, you do not have any fish, do you?' They answered Him, 'No." And He said to them, "Cast the net on the right-hand side of the boat, and you will find a catch.' They cast therefore, and then they were not able to haul it in because of the great number of fish. Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land, full of large fish, a hundred and fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not torn."