Article June 10, 2013 Issue

Letting go

Marci Martin

When I lived in the San Diego area, one of my favorite pastimes was walking on the beach. Many of my problems were solved while watching the waves and the seagulls coming and going. One day, soon after my son had passed on, I spent quite some time on the beach. The gulls were all around on the sand and flying overhead. While watching one group, I saw one of them suddenly fly higher than the rest and take off out over the ocean, until he disappeared beyond the horizon.

As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you.
—Isaiah 66:13

I asked myself, “Why did he go away from the rest of his flock?” Many questions came to thought: “Will he come back? Has he ceased to be?” Thinking about my son, the answers soon became clear: No, he is going right on his way, safely in God’s loving care, learning what he needs to know about himself as God’s beloved child. And the most important thought was this wonderful, comforting answer: he is still growing and ascending all the way, for all time to come—and I can let him go without doubt and without grief, safe in the shadow of God’s always present wings.