A Thousand Words

Its been 3 whirlwind weeks for the Nyman clan, and if my mom was still around, she’d have labeled it all “happy chaos.”

Louisa and Teddy’s wedding day arrived at last, after a 15-month engagement. The ceremony was joy-filled and rewarding as Pastor Nelson married them, and our entire family of 26 attended…. all except Nate, of course, who was deeply missed.

But the wedding took place on his birthday (8/18/18), and he was honored during the ceremony and also at the reception – which helped.

In the 9 years since his death, life has expanded to include 14 new family members, none of whom ever met Nate. So we forge ahead, embracing these new relationships while still taking pleasure in the old.

My one wish for the time we had together (other than witnessing the wedding) was to have a family photo taken. Because our children live all over the globe, the Nyman gang hasn’t been in the same place at the same time for 4 years. So this, to me, was an opportunity not to be missed.

The wedding photographer was available the morning after, and even the bride and groom were willing to rise early on their first day as Mr. and Mrs. (They’d already postponed their honeymoon to “hang” with family.)

“And where,” said the photographer, “will this photo session be?”

Where else but the beach.

Back in May, I crafted an email to my 7 children and their spouses with my picture request…. hoping they weren’t rolling their eyes across cyberspace. But after reading of my longing, their responses were kind. Even enthusiastic.

“So,” I wrote, “we’ll get up early the morning after the wedding and meet at the beach — wearing T-shirts color-coded by family. I’ll provide the shirts and the brunch afterwards.”

Though some were skeptical about the shirt idea, they knew there was no fighting it. And as these colorful shirts began arriving in my mail, I tried to keep expectations realistic…. but prayed for good weather and 12 cooperative grandchildren.

God graciously gave me the desire of my heart, a picture with everyone present and sunshine as a backdrop. I’ll be forever grateful to Him, and to the family I love – including Nate, who took a chance on me 50 years ago, which resulted in this: