He had always been very special and important to me through my life. Yet most significantly as a young child. He was one of my favorite people, next to my grandfather. And when we lost my grandfather, it was my uncle who helped me to cope.
Tomorrow we will be attending his funeral. I have been asked to share a few memories of my uncle. I decided to honor him on my blog as well and share with you what I will share with those who are in attendance.
Please keep my family in your prayers, his mom, his children and grandchildren, siblings and many nieces and nephews who loved him.
The word honor means to revere, respect, and to manifest the highest veneration for, in words or actions. Today I want to honor a man who was worthy of respect and admiration. We are each here because Rick played a part in our lives, big or little, in the past or present. He had a way of just drawing people in and making them laugh. He liked to laugh.
I have found that often times in our lives people play significant roles at different times. It seems that there are seasons of influence where as our lives change and flow so does the time we spend together. I have many memories of my uncle throughout my life. Mostly, it was that he was always there. When I was little if he was in the room, I wasn’t far behind him. I remember thinking how much I wanted my own children to have someone special like that. He was quiet and didn’t always have a lot to say, but he spoke volumes with his ability to listen.
There are many traits that I would use to describe my uncle. He was patient, especially with children. He was kind and giving. He had a servant’s heart. If there was something that he could do for you, he would. So many stories that have been shared about him have all reflected this trait that seemed to define Rick. He loved to help people. He was a generous soul who gave w/o thinking.
His work ethic was phenomenal. He was a hard worker and he was good at what he did. Yesterday, a friend wrote to me and shared how he really encouraged her son when he went to Cars R Us to buy a car for the first time. Rick told him how he started out washing cars and worked his way up to selling them. It left an impression on this young man and gave him the confidence boost he needed.
He loved his kids and his family. He was very proud of his children and so blessed by his grandchildren. He was made to be a grandpa. Kids loved Rick. Whenever you entered a room, if you had a baby in your arms, it was soon in his. He would find just about any way he could to sneak them piece of fudge or candy or whatever treat he could find.
Above all, He was loved. He was an amazing dad, son, grandfather, brother, uncle and friend. He will be missed in all the big and little things, because he was so much a part of the lives of those who he cared about.
When I think about my uncle I think about these verses found in 1 Corinthians 13. “Love is patient and kind; love is not boastful or vainglorious; it is not conceited and it is not rude, it does not insist on it’s own way, for it is not self-seeking; it takes no account of the evil done to it and it pays no attention to a suffered wrong. It does not rejoice at injustice, but rejoices in truth. Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person, its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and it endures everything without weakening. Love never fails.”
I have found that often times in our lives people play significant roles at different times. It seems that there are seasons of influence where as our lives change and flow so does the time we spend together. I have many memories of my uncle throughout my life. Mostly, it was that he was always there. When I was little if he was in the room, I wasn’t far behind him. I remember thinking how much I wanted my own children to have someone special like that. He was quiet and didn’t always have a lot to say, but he spoke volumes with his ability to listen.
There are many traits that I would use to describe my uncle. He was patient, especially with children. He was kind and giving. He had a servant’s heart. If there was something that he could do for you, he would. So many stories that have been shared about him have all reflected this trait that seemed to define Rick. He loved to help people. He was a generous soul who gave w/o thinking.
His work ethic was phenomenal. He was a hard worker and he was good at what he did. Yesterday, a friend wrote to me and shared how he really encouraged her son when he went to Cars R Us to buy a car for the first time. Rick told him how he started out washing cars and worked his way up to selling them. It left an impression on this young man and gave him the confidence boost he needed.
He loved his kids and his family. He was very proud of his children and so blessed by his grandchildren. He was made to be a grandpa. Kids loved Rick. Whenever you entered a room, if you had a baby in your arms, it was soon in his. He would find just about any way he could to sneak them piece of fudge or candy or whatever treat he could find.
Above all, He was loved. He was an amazing dad, son, grandfather, brother, uncle and friend. He will be missed in all the big and little things, because he was so much a part of the lives of those who he cared about.
When I think about my uncle I think about these verses found in 1 Corinthians 13. “Love is patient and kind; love is not boastful or vainglorious; it is not conceited and it is not rude, it does not insist on it’s own way, for it is not self-seeking; it takes no account of the evil done to it and it pays no attention to a suffered wrong. It does not rejoice at injustice, but rejoices in truth. Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person, its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and it endures everything without weakening. Love never fails.”
No comments:
Post a Comment