God often,” said Jack. “I’m here by
myself. Who else am I going to talk
to?” His eyes crinkled with his smile.
On one particular sleepless
night, his mind kept returning to
a word he’d heard his pastor Ricky
Cummings share during Grief Share
that past week. “He was talking
about Abram and his troubles, his
dark days. Ricky said that Abram
had this conversation with God
about what He had promised him.
He wasn't arguing with God or
criticizing God or questioning God.
He was just looking for clarification.”
Clarification. That was all
Jack wanted. “I started looking at
my history and wondering why
all of these things happened. But
everywhere I looked, I saw God’s
hand keeping me. My parents were
not responsible people, and God
rescued me from them. The way
I met my wife was nothing short
of a miracle.” And as his thoughts
turned to his father, the perspective
at eighty-seven was far different
than the one he’d held of his father
in younger
years. “With age,
you begin to
understand things differently. You
become more forgiving,” said Jack.
He also considered his mistakes.
Clarity come as he realized that
everything brought him to this
present moment. Who he has
become, even with his mistakes, is
not something he would trade. “I’m
past being ashamed of anything.
It’s history,” said Jack. “I used to
say, I wish I hadn’t done that, but
every experience is a part of me,
too. I don’t know who I would have
become without it.”
I looked back to the stacks of
notebooks filled with Jack’s poetry
on the table between us. “One
night,” said Jack, “when I sat down
to write out my thoughts, it turned
into a poem. I found I could write
what I felt in rhyme, and it clarified
things for me.” He quickly added,
“I’m always editing. Nothing is ever
finished.” Like all of us, I thought.
Life is a process. Jack’s “charmed life”
is the perspective of a man who has
chosen to see the loving hand of God
through it all.
e,
Accessorize It
Designs
Dress Up Your
Windows
with our timeless
window solutions
537-7008
Blinds
Shades
Shutters
Drapes
117 NW Main St., Vidalia
Seasons
Design
Center
Eccl 3:1
Love your
Surroundings!
Windmill
RESTAURANT
Join us for
delicious Southern culinary dishes,
seafood & steaks in a relazing, fun
environment.
Open Thurs-Sat, 11-2 PM & 5-9 PM
Sun, 11-3 PM & Mon, 11-2 PM
375 MAIN ST • TARRYTOWN • 9125294376
Catering • Sunday-Monday Buffet
HOMETOWN LIVING AT I TS BEST 53