Baby Sydney

We received a message this morning that our brother-in-law's niece died in her sleep last night.

She was 5 months old.

I know.

I've been walking around stunned for the last 4 hours or so. I'm on the verge of tears, had a hard time eating lunch, and my body is just out of kilter.

No parent should have to bury their child. I believe it is one of the cruelest things our Lord allows to happen.

Pretty frustrated with the man upstairs right now, but unfortunately that doesn't mean he's gonna be providing answers any time soon.

Sometimes we just have to find them through faith.

Not a day goes by that I don't miss our Meghan Joy, that I don't wonder what might have been. I have all the physical and practical answers, but I'll never really know why.

No one can.

Not long ago, I reconnected with an old friend who had also lost a child, and I could tell that she hadn't really come to terms, that she didn't know what to expect. She wanted some answers, some closure.

I reached out to her, and told her that there is no right way, no time table, and no formula for dealing with the grief of losing a child.

It is a pain you can never know unless you have experienced it yourself. It's a pain I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy. It is a wound that may not heal.

But it is not the end, and it can be overcome. Eventually we all find a way to survive. As Netter is fond of saying - "That which does not kill me makes me stronger."

I'm sure that's the last thing Sydney's parents would want to hear right now. I don't know them very well, but I have met them. They are a wonderful young couple. My heart aches for them today.

I know that one of the things that helped us the most was the support we felt from our friends, from our community, from people who would reach out to us and tell us they understood.

Today, if I may I'd like to ask all of you to look up, around, over above and through whatever you do and say a prayer for Baby Sydney and for her parents, that they may find peace.