Bike rides, alpine slides, train rides, mountain hikes. We tried to cram a plethora of fun into our long-awaited week with the 12 of us. The first miracle was that we all showed up! Between dance camp, swim team, concert tours, and work, it was quite shocking that we could gather our three adult children, two spouses and five grandchildren for a full week in Colorado. If you peeked in our fridge that week, you could find six different kinds of milk because, well, we don’t all live the same. So there was a tiny bit of trepidation as to how living under one roof for one week would go. The fun exceeded my wildest expectations. The beaming smiles of each one in the Ehman clan linger with me, a week later.
But the truth is that my highly organized planning was merely the backdrop for the real beauty that unfolded. What lingers now in my heart is what happened in between the planned parts. The uncontrollable giggles that erupted during an evening game three generations played on the deck. The night we went out to dinner and the grandkids slipped away to romp spontaneously in the babbling creek adjacent to the restaurant. (Yep, one of them came home drenched). The poignant reflections shared around the dinner table the nights we cooked simple meals at home. And even the one mishap. Three of us got stranded on the top of the mountain because lightning struck and the chairlift shut down for hours. That left us unplanned time to share in a more vulnerable and honest conversation. Showing up is part of what it means to be in any real form of community – be it family, friends, or church. But the true miracle is that grace unfolds in the places we don’t control.
As the week unfolded, I realized we were each coming to see one another anew, that we were learning that there is more to learn about those we already hold dear. When we risk opening our lives up to one another, something beautiful and rare can unfold, Something mysterious and sacred. As the last group pulled out of the driveway to go home, my youngest granddaughter rolled down the window. “Can you please plan another family dinner as soon as you get home, and can you make sure everyone can come?”
“I sure will,” I promised.
Grace and Peace,
Carla
