Sunday, October 20, 2013

Amy's still sharing her story

Amy continues to teach us. Even though life has been very busy here and I have not shared on my blog, Amy has touched my life every day. We had our oldest friends fly over 1000 miles to visit us last week. They are not our oldest friends in age, but in the sense that we met before either of us were married. My dear friend and I worked at a National Park together and she was dating her childhood sweetheart who became her husband three years later and that summer I met the man who would become my husband just a year later. We were in each others weddings and have stayed in contact for the last 37 years even though so many miles separate us.
They treated us to a weekend away at a bed and breakfast.  The Inn at Ragged Edge.   We visited the National Apple Festival in Biglersville, toured Gettysburg, and the countryside around Shippensburg for some Amish stores, and we ate! We acted like we were 16 and 17 again. Even though my body felt like a old lady! 
Most of all, they let us talk. They asked us questions about Amy and life. They let us cry and be quiet if we needed. They were great! 
Our first night we dined at The Historic Dobbin House.
The food was wonderful and they had a strolling musician. All was well until he came to our table and starting singing a song about missing the love of his life, and that she left too soon.I totally lost it! We all were thinking about Amy and I could not hold back the tears and couldn't wait until he got through the song as I was almost sobbing. He was very kind, and I told him about Amy and gave her story brochure to him. 
I shared quite a few of her stories over the weekend. If I see someone who is in a wheelchair I will give it to them. If I feel led to hand it out to someone else, I try to do so. She is still telling her story to others.
The other thing that happened was just a God-thing! We were driving around Amish country and had already been to a fabric store when my friend's husband took a side road because of a sign to a quilt shop. We didn't really want to go to a quilt shop! We couldn't afford any quilts and I wasn't going to buy anything, but the men were talking and just kept driving. So we get to this shop and a young lady came out of the house to go to the shop and she was pushing a wheelchair. She was 25 and her sister Naomi (in the wheelchair) was 27. Just a few years younger than Amy. She couldn't talk, was diagnosed with CP, was even skinnier than Amy was,  but she had the biggest smile on her face. Her sister said I could talk to Naomi and I told her about my Amy and then I couldn't finish because of the tears. Before we left, I gave her a big hug and caressed her one braid in front. The other was behind her back. I could have asked to hold her and I'm sure the sister would have let me, but I don't think I could have controlled my tears and I didn't want Naomi to see me cry. I wish I would have asked to take a picture, but that might have offended them. I gave her Amy's Story and she asked for my address as they don't have a computer. 
It was so very hard to see another young lady like my Amy, but I know that God sent us there and that I needed to touch her hand and feel her hair and give her a hug.  I'm trying to see what God has to teach me in everything that happens in my life. 
Before my friends left, we visited the cemetery and had a good cry. They are the first people, outside of the family, that have been to the cemetery with us.
Thank you my friends, for such a great visit. We will never forget it!


Carriage ride in Gettysburg

 In the cupola that Buford used at the Seminary in Gettysburg.



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