Love, Loss and Forgiveness

Love and loss, highs and lows, ups and downs. All of these are part of life, but its often hard to understand why.

As I’ve mentioned in a few of my previous WIRLs, my family and I have recently joined our YMCA community and on Sundays, a church called Forest Hill houses some of their services in the facility. Last week I attended a group exercise class after the holiday weekend and at the end, the instructor mentioned a terrible tragedy that was rallying support from both the Y and the church community. The Ballantyne campus Pastor, Gentry Eddings, and his family had been involved in a terrible car accident on their way home from his sister’s wedding. His son, Dobbs, 2, was killed, and his 38 week pregnant wife, Hadley, was injured and forced to have an emergency C-section. The newborn, Reed, suffered from a brain bleed and eventually died shortly after his birth.

I can’t even imagine how hard it must be for this family to breathe right now. I attended the church service at Forest Hill for the first time this past weekend and found myself very emotional and confused. I kept asking myself, Why? Why is such a faith-driven family being dealt these cards? Why should anyone have to go through this? And I kept wondering how I would feel if I were in their shoes and I think this is especially why I am so emotional about it. I also have an almost-2 year old son and I can’t imagine my life without him. Putting myself in their shoes made me hurt for them, respect them, and realize how strong they must be, especially because they’ve already publicly stated that they forgive the truck driver whose mistake took the life of both of their sons. I am not sure I would be able to be so strong.

Putting myself in their shoes made me hurt for them, respect them, and realize how strong they must be, especially because they’ve already publicly stated that they forgive the truck driver whose mistake took the life of both of their sons. I am not sure I would be able to be so strong.

I wanted to share this story on WIRL Project because I think it’s important to realize just how precious life really is. Our faith, whether it’s religious or not, is tested in times of hardship, not during the good times. Our true colors show when we’re tested in ways we’ve never been tested before. The Eddings family is showing us who they really are by being so forgiving and strong as they greave.

Please keep the Eddings family in your thoughts and prayers. You never really know what loss feels like until you face it, but support from others is what usually keeps you going during these tough times. As you go about your day and life, keep this story in mind and know that life is precious; make sure the people who are important to you know how you feel.

To read the full story and keep up with updates, visit the link listed below from the Charlotte Observer.

*Image source: Charlotte Observer