It's been a while since Kate spend time in her home town. They decided to take the kids to see her parents and just to show them were they grew up. They have just finished packing the car and is almost ready to start the long trip to their grand parents.
Kate and her husband John grew up in Kimberley. After they finished school they moved away. They have been so busy the past few years that they lost track of time. Their parents come and visit but now its time to go home. The kids is so excited to see were their parents use to live and they wanted to see their grandparents again.
The drive was long and it was raining almost the whole time. The kids fell asleep and woke up just in time when they arrived in Kimberley. They could hardly wait just to stretch their legs. Grandma and grandpa was waiting for them outside when they pulled up in the driveway. They jumped out of the car and hugs and kisses were exchanged. They have been looking forward to today. Kate was relieved to be their. Wow how memories just flooded through her mind. She took a deep breath, she will admit it now she missed her home town. It was so nice to be back even if it's just for a visit.
They unpacked and settled in. Mom made their favorite food, the whole house was filled with the smell of delicious supper. There were laughter around the table and grandpa told stories of the good old days.
The next day Kate and John took the kids to the play park. Every thing seemed so small. Kate remembered when she was small and looked down the streets it felt like it never stopped and now its not that long anymore. The house she grew up in seemed so small now. 'It's interesting how big things is when you are a child,' she thought to herself. She could see her children was loving this new adventure and exploring their parents history. They loved the play park. They couldn't stop asking questions. When they were younger they used to walk to school, play in the street and just enjoy being free. When she think of her girls she feels sad because they can't play in the street anymore or walk to school.
That afternoon she decided to show them how to make mud cakes and catch some butterflies in granny's garden. The mud cakes was fun but they were covered in mud and started throwing each other with the cakes. O how much fun this was even grandpa joined in. That evening grandpa told the kids a story. It started like this:
Long long time ago their were 2 brothers. They loved working with there parents on there family farm. The younger brother decided he wanted to do something different and decided to take his inheritance and start his own business. He was so happy and everyone loved him...he had a big house, a lot of cars and even his business was successful. Up and till one day every thing started to turn out in a disaster. He lost his business, his house and cars. And the sad part is he even lost his friends. He thought his friends loved him but realized they loved his money. He was really sad, how is he going to survive? He didn't want to face his parents again but that was his only option. He decided to go back to his home town and face his family. To his surprise they were so excited to see him and filled with joy for their lost son had returned. His brother was upset with him, he felt that that all this was unnecessary. He was hoping his parents would show his younger brother away but what he didn't realize is that no matter what, they are brothers for live.
Kate had heard this story a lot of times but this time it was different. She felt like this younger brother that had returned home. She realized that facing your past or choices that she thought was great and turned out to be disastrous keeps you away from feeling at home. She wanted her children to feel at home and to feel that no matter how hard of terrible a situation they will always come back home. Like this story her parents made them feel so welcome and loved. She could see her children enjoyed the stories. She loved her parents and they were always their for them.
That evening she tugged her kids into bed. Her youngest daughter asked her why the older brother in the story was so mad at his younger brother... this is an interesting question. She explained to her child that sometimes in life you think that the decisions you make is good but turns out to be bad. The oldest brother were mad at him because he had been on their parents farm his whole life and worked so hard. He was blaming his brother for leaving but more important he was mad because his younger brother left him behind. He loved his brother and his brother didn't even told him were he went. "Family is important that's why God gave you a sister", she explained to her youngest. "We have each other to stand by and support and we always look out for each other, we can always face everything with God and our family". She could see this satisfied her daughter, she fell asleep ride away.
That night Kate thought of her child again and the question. She realized that life gets busy and she lost track of time. Her kids needed this and she needed to face her home town again. The past memories wasn't all bad but she needed to come back again. She had grown so much in her faith, but this part she tugged away so deep in her heart and it was time to let go of the past that hurt her so much. It's a new beginning. She felt this huge burden lift from her chest.
Facing her giants made her to feel free again.