Gideon’s mother, Penelope, left this comment in response to your comments and prayers for them, I wanted to make sure that no one missed it. Losing a child is one thing that I can not imagine surviving, it seems too much for me. It has always been encouraging to know Christian women who are living through it and to see the grace, mercy and peace that God pours out upon them.
Dear Sisters in Christ,
Thank you for blessing us with your loving concern & prayers. We left our dear little Gideon’s body to be buried today. It is a beautiful country cemetery near a little church in a community called Dutch Valley. He is in a row with my great-grandparents and two great uncles, with spaces reserved on either side of him now for my parents and his own.
Our 5-yr-old cried when we were about to leave and I gently reminded her that Gideon is not really there now. The part of him that was inside that smiled at us and cooed to us and looked at us with those dear, bright, adoring eyes is now in a perfect new body in Heaven with Jesus. It’s time to put the old body away like an old coat that we don’t need anymore because we have a much nicer one.
The Lord seems to help me explain what is hard to bear myself when I need to console one of the children. One friend who had lost a newlywed sister tried to console her mother in a similar way, and the mother replied that she knew all that, but that body being buried was still the one she’d cared for. I understand. Gideon & I have been through so much together!
I miss him cuddling in the crook of my arm, leaving ear prints when he was done nursing or napping there. He had chapped his knuckles chewing on them & just started drooling like he was starting to teethe in his last couple of days. His eyes were starting to turn brown like his Daddy’s. Then all at once he’s gone.
Some of the hard things for me have been waking up and knowing he’s not there, my body aching to nurse him, remembering how he looked when I found him, watching my husband sobbing, seeing the children grieve … oh, there’s several things.
But gradually I’m coming to accept what Kimberly’s Dad brought out so beautifully in the funeral service yesterday. Although 4 months seems so short a lifetime, since God creates each life with a purpose, in His perspective Gideon lived a full life. He fulfilled the purpose he was created for, then God called him home.
May God be glorified in how our family responds to this mercifully rare trial. I know He has so much to teach us. Do continue to pray for our adjustment and courage to go on. Please pray that we would come to rest easy though our little roommate is gone, and that we would all learn to treat each day with each of our family members as a precious gift.
Thank you Penelope for sharing some of your heart, how we can continue to pray and a little bit of Gideon’s brightness with us.
Please continue to pray for the family. They have a long road ahead as they adjust to their new normal without Gideon.
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It is a privilege to know this devoted Christian family. Thank you Penelope for your testimony to God’s love and mercy.
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Wow, I hadn’t read about Gideon’s story yet on your blog. We also lost a son to HLHS. Elijah was our 2nd son and he passed away at 18 days old. We know what you are going through, Penelope, and we will be praying in the weeks and months to come.
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I am praying for this dear family; My heart is aching for them. Thank you for sharing this note from Gideon’s mother. What an incredible testimony she is!
in Christ,
Jennifer (Mother to a 15 month old Gideon)
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