Ehlana, Ethan, Naomi, and Aiden:
Rest in the Light, Grandpa Lloyd; and our condolences again go out to everyone who is grieving his passing today.
There will be no way to cover everything that has happened since our last report, but let’s begin with the basic news; and then move on to some commentary on our experiences over the past day and change.
The family dinner last night was again in one of the small dining rooms at the Inn; and we continued to help out with the kids while the adults continued to tell stories about Grandpa Lloyd, remember his life, and deal with their grief. We moved on from there to the church fellowship hall, but while we – the kids – spent some time there too; we also used one of the Sunday school classrooms to entertain the kids. We’re only a couple of years or so older than Gerry and Annie – the oldest of Michael’s next-generation cousins, but they were still happy to hang out with us – and Sophia while we also took care of entertaining their younger siblings; Erica and Lauren. Sierra was with us a couple of times too, but one of those visits was while she had a nap and we just kept an eye on her too. Other cousins and kids rotated through too while parents were visiting in the fellowship hall; so we were busy all evening.
We didn’t stay to the end of the visitation, but were there when Cassie got home, and while she arrived about when expected, there were so many visitors; she was with Michael and his family for the extra hour that was needed before the visitation was stopped at around eleven o’clock. All of the younger kids were brought home by ten o’clock, though, and while we helped out with getting Michael’s youngest cousins to Jake and Stephanie’s house; there was adult support too; and we went home from there. Our evening ended with Jacuzzi or bath time and an extended chat time that wrapped up with a short visit with Mom, Dad, Cassie, and Michael once they got home from the church too before we all headed for bed.
Okay, four of us headed for the lounge and a co-ed sofa sleepover, but we all needed cuddle buddies last night.
Starting our day with Tai Chi might seem wrong to some people, but getting calm and centered was important for all of us; and we did that outdoors and by the river even though it was quite foggy this morning. We all needed to rush around and get ready for the funeral right away; Michael and Cassie headed for the Inn to help out with the breakfast they were hosting there for the family and friends for eight o’clock; and then we were busy with kid-control again starting with getting the kids to the Inn and through to the end of the luncheon in the fellowship hall that followed the interment ceremony at the cemetery. The funeral service was in the sanctuary at the church; Pastors Lewis and Martha led it because they’d known Grandpa Lloyd much-better than their son had; and it began at ten o’clock. Michael’s cousin, Drew, gave the eulogy for their grandfather; and Cassie and Michael sang a duet version of Grandpa Lloyd’s favorite praise song. We won’t really comment on either part of the service; since it would just feel weird to pick highlights for something like this. Jacob, Jake, and Michael were half of the pallbearers team with the three Bishop men; and the ceremony at the cemetery was shorter than the trips there and back to the church. We won’t write more about that either, since it was tough on everyone to say a final goodbye to Grandpa Lloyd.
The luncheon was put on with the help of several church groups; and we did a side-trip home to pick up our food contributions. The hour and a half of busy that followed for us included getting the younger kids fed; keeping them entertained; and shielding them a bit from the saddest moments being shared by their grandmother, parents, and other adults.
Our day got a bit weird after the luncheon because the Bishop clan packed up and headed for home almost-immediately. That wasn’t a surprise for us, but it was for a few of the home town members of their family. The formal excuse for that decision was the forecast for a lot of rain over the next two days along with the need to get home and deal with the financial and legal issues that go along with any deaths. While both points were true, Jacob was disappointed that he wouldn’t get to have more time with his mother; and he was not-so-subtly advised that his help wouldn’t be needed in dealing with his father’s will or taking care of Grandma Francis. She went along with that too, but while she’s been putting on a brave face while here; we sense and know how devastated she is; and Michael’s aunt is taking control now because she can.
The Bishops were on the road by three o’clock, but our work didn’t end there because we helped out with another clean-up of guest rooms and bathrooms for Jake and Stephanie. Cassie and Michael didn’t head back to their townhouse right away, but they’re on the way home as we’re writing this update; and will need to do some co-self-healing to make up for the lack of sleep they’ve had over the past few days. Rebecca and Lucas are likely back at their apartment already, and we wish that we could help them too, but that isn’t an option; so we’ll count on Lucas to take care of Rebecca until they’re home again on the weekend. When we were finished helping out with the clean-up chores, we were set free for the rest of the day, but while we’re nearly half-way through our March break; it didn’t seem right to go out and play with our friends. Instead of doing that, we had some quiet music play time at home; our dinner was only with Mom while Cassie and Michael were busy with his family for that meal; and then we eventually got to have a visit with them before they hit the road again. Mom did a group Magi lesson with us before that, and had Olde Bakery treats to send with Cassie and Michael, but we didn’t really talk about anything important while Michael is still having a tough time with his grief that is also mixed with regret and a sadness because he – or we – weren’t able to do anything to possibly save his grandfather. We’ve watched television in the lounge since they left; Mom has been working in the office; and we’ll be having another co-ed sofa sleepover that is comforting for all of us; and won’t feel even remotely like it might have if this had just been a normal holiday from school.
We’re ready for the observational commentary now; so let’s begin with how we’re feeling about not even having a chance to heal Grandpa Lloyd.
Michael isn’t the only one feeling that way, but while we might have been able to do something if he’d been living here, that isn’t certain; and none of us should be second-guessing that or our recent past with Grandpa Lloyd. There isn’t really any way for us to know whether we could have helped him at all, but even if we could; we can’t know whether he’d have gained much time or had any quality of life or if we’d have only prolonged the inevitable. We definitely didn’t foresee anything that directed us to intervene, and while that’s tough to deal with when it involves a very personal relationship; it is also something that we deal with all of the time as Magi Masters. This does have us thinking about all of our favorite seniors, though, and there is a very good chance that we’ll collectively be giving them Magi-powered check-ups over the next few weeks – either passively or overtly. No, we’re not sensing that we should do that, but we can; and doubt that anyone will be surprised by our need to do that.
The things that we’ve sensed over the past few days from everyone around us have been tough a lot of the time, and while we really don’t want to get into details; we can’t really comment on that without adding at least a bit of context. Michael’s Aunt Anne is channeling her grief into anger; blames losing her father on the fifty years or so he worked at the Inn; and that anger is also being directed at Jacob, Miranda, and our entire home town. For his part, Jacob is rightfully sensing that he’s lost more than his father today; and he can’t really reconcile the hate and anger with his own efforts to focus on the love and joy that he’d rather remember of his father. From our perspective, both sides of those sentiments don’t match up with what we sense and know, but that’s because Grandpa Lloyd and Grandma Francis never loved owning and working at the Inn the way that Jacob, Miranda, Jake, and Stephanie love it. We’re sure that there was love and joy in their lives and happiness with their kids, but there was some resentment too; which is why we also know they’ve been happier since retiring and moving away. That move was nearly two decades ago, and Grandpa Lloyd has had a pretty good life; so we’ll side with Jacob on this; and wish that everyone could celebrate his life and let go of the pain that won’t be good for anyone.
That’s enough for tonight. We’ll let you know about anything important that might happen in the aftermath of the funeral, but life will begin to return to normal tomorrow too; so we’ll likely get started on a shortened March break with our friends – though we don’t sense that there will be anything normal about the rest of our week.
That’s all we have; so, until next time, this is Ehlana Proctor and gang; live from the hidden home of the Magi of the Light – and May the Magi Force be with you!
