I returned a week ago from a 4 day trip to New Jersey to visit my “baby boy” Daniel and his wife Katie. I love spending time with them, and because he’s my son, there was more connecting and time with him than with Katie. But the 3 of us spent precious time together. The time is more precious now because they are so far away. Guess I was lucky to have him in Chicago for most of his adult life until he moved away for an amazing career opportunity. And, boy am I lucky, because he will be back “home” for a few days this week – an unexpected surprise – work-related trip, and our whole family will have a few hours of precious time together Tuesday. David, my older son lives less than a mile away, with his wife Kaiti (yep, I have 2 daughters-in-law named “KT”). They are busy with their lives both working full-time jobs plus the never-ending parenting they have with their 2 precious and precocious young daughters, my granddaughters.
And then there is other “family” and I am going to visit my so-called adopted daughter and her family in Alabama in November, then fly on to Texas to visit my family of origin. It’s been a year since I’ve been back to Texas to see family, although we managed to get together in the spring in Arkansas. All these family connections I have are important and precious to me.
And there’s the other kind of family I have been blessed to be a part of here, right here at Unity in Naperville. Even though I’ve only been here 4 years, the family feeling I get here is another special connection I have, right here at home. From the first moment I stepped into a UIN service, I felt like I was home, a part of something special. And that feeling, that connection has only grown through these past few years. From Sunday morning services and socializing, to the after-service lunches, the team meetings, the events, the outside-of-church connections with new friends, to now being part of the Board of Trustees. The family feeling continues to grow in me.
How about you?
