The Kindness of Friends

You've heard that it takes a community to raise a child. This summer I found that it takes numerous friends to free up a mother of five.

In August, I was able to go on a missions trip team to Montreal with my oldest son. We worked with a church there to provide an English immersion program for one week. I served in the kitchen while my husband worked as an English "buddy" to the French participants. We had a great time, but couldn't have done it without all the help on the home front.

We were gone for nine days, and my husband didn't want to take holiday time from work when we weren't all together as a family. So what's a mother to do? Fortunately, I was able to call upon my friends to care for my remaining four children in my absence.

Karen was the first helper. She took care of my three youngest, for two days, while my husband was at work, even while she was entertaining company of her own. My kids had a marvelous time at her house.

Next was Laverne. She came to our home for two afternoons, played with the kids and made them lunch. Laverne was awesome, bringing crafts with her to ensure my kids had fun.

My friend, Myrna Lynn was gracious enough to take my daughter for two days and one night. Anna is the only girl in our family, and with me gone, she definitely needed some girl time. She also needed someone to brush through her long hair. It took Myrna Lynn an hour to get all the tangles out!

Still another friend, Connie gave my kids a fun day out at her acreage, playing with her kids. She even came into town to pick them up!

Our good friend, Sara was also very helpful. She took my middle son for most of the week, while he went to day camp with her son. He was able to be away from home overnight, with his good friend.

Last but certainly not least, my best friend, Murray, who is also my husband, filled in all the blank spots in the schedule. He made sure everyone ate regular meals, wore clean clothes, and got where they needed to go. He did double duty, as both mom and dad for the week.

These descriptions don't do justice to what my friends did for my children and for me. Since I wasn't here, I don't know exactly the details in what they did, but I do know that their care eased my absence for my kids, kept my husband from being overloaded, and freed me to serve. They extended great kindness to me and my family.

So it really does take a community to help raise my children. I'm fortunate to be part of a church community who helped my family, so that I, in turn could help others. They exemplified a verse from the Bible:

"Be kind and compassionate to one another." (Ephesians 4:32)

I thank God for blessing me with such faithful and kind friends.