Long Distance Family

We put Amanda and Michael on planes back to the US the last weeks after having them “home” for Christmas break. We had a great time together! 

Yes, the house seems empty now. Living 5000 miles away from your children is not something I find easy. I usually spend a couple of days after they leave feeling the “empty space” that comes with their departure.

My mother-heart feels heavy, I might shed some tears, and sometimes relish in the memory of the very familiar feeling that “being a whole family” brought back. I’m sure many of you can relate. The long distance family is no longer an unusual phenomena in our global world.

I often struggle with what this means for us as a family. Does the long distance define us?  How do we balance a live meaningful relationships as a "long distance family"? 

How much should we "hold on" and how much should we "let go"? 

A fun ski outing over Christmas break

Cheese fondu prep

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I visited a refugee center in a neighboring village this morning, 7 km from my house. 

40 people arrived just 3 days ago from various countries that have been ravaged by war, poverty and economic crisis, and 140 more will join them in the next couple of months.  I assume that most of them felt they had to leave their “home” and likely even family members to hopefully find a new place to begin again.

 As I sat with them in a room listening to the social worker explain, through broken translation, the refugee center’s “Hausordnung”, you could sense their apprehension, questions and uncertainty about this new place and their future lives.

Good times with Grandpa!

 What I did notice is that most of them sat together in what I assume were families; father, mother, children, some grandparents.  They held on to each other, touched each other, moms stroked their little girl’s hair, little boys sat on their dad’s laps, daughters whispered comments to grandparents..... and there, amidst the unfamiliar, foreign, and frightening new situation, was a kind of security, connection, and a sense of strength through the family unit which enables people to face the unknowns of the future together.

Family is important! It is a gift to have one, whether long-distance, displaced, patch-work, or if you all live in the same town.  Cherish your family, make your relationships a priority. Be open to sharing “your family” with those who don’t have one. Phil and I work with so many children who don’t. 

Pray for each other, encourage each other, carry each other, and love, love, love.