“What is to give light must endure burning.”~ Viktor Frankl
I initially missed this day’s post because of late night visitation services for Ryan Paul Bick. People waited in a winter cold line wrapped around the funeral home and down the block for nearly two hours just to pay their respects. A two hour service turned into five. It was quite moving, and it lifted the family like little else could have done given the circumstances. Near the end of the night, when only the family remained, I was sitting alone at the back of the room. There were Ryan’s first cousins – Connor, Taylor, and Ashley – and brother Brett embracing each other, telling Ryan stories, crying and laughing all at once. And, just off to the side, as she had done so many times throughout the night, stood very quietly the love of Ryan’s life, Chelsey Robinson. So sweet. So hurt. So composed. The wonderful thing about the Bick/Barnes/Yelton family (and they do operate as a single family at times) is that they adopt people along the way. They’ve adopted Chelsey, and I have no doubt that she will bring them great joy and comfort, and it will be returned in kind. That’s the kind of people they are. What a blessing to be part of.
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