Loss.

I'm in the middle of this massive blog update, but instead of getting behind while I'm trying to get back ahead I decided to post.

This morning my Uncle Johnny passed away suddenly after complications from his diabetes. I've been in a bit of a state of shock all morning thinking so many things. I don't really think I've wrapped my mind around it. This is my mom's brother, but for the sake of the blog record for Micah I thought I'd tell the "real" story behind her "brothers."

When my mom (your grandmother KayKay, Micah) was very little, her mom suddenly became ill with liver cancer and passed away extremely quickly. Your KayKay was ten at the time, and her daddy (your great granddaddy John Roy) was very sick. So my mommy (your KayKay) and grandfather moved to Tennessee from Georgia to live with my grandmother's sister and brother-in-law. Basically, KayKay moved in with her aunt and uncle. KayKay's Aunt Bessie had two sons, Johnny & Barry. One son was older than KayKay, and one son was younger than KayKay. KayKay was raised with Johnny & Barry, her first cousins, who are in essence her brothers although she has no biological brothers. A few years later my "real" grandfather (John Roy) died, so my mom grew up with her aunt and uncle as her guardians. They became my "grandparents", and I was raised calling them Granny & Granddaddy.

Confused yet?

Well, the oldest of the three children, my Uncle Johnny, was the one who passed away this morning in Georgia. And although family can be spread all over the world, they are still your family. You still love them no matter what happens or how long it has been since you've seen them last. And I know that my mom is especially hurting this morning as are my cousins who have lost their daddy. In fact, my aunt is now in the hospital with chest pains induced from the shock and stress of this event.

In the end, we really don't have much of a choice. The Lord takes us home when He says so. I'm just thankful to know that Uncle Johnny went to be with Jesus today. That is some comfort, but it is still extremely painful for my family.

At some point this week, we'll be traveling for the funeral. I've cried a lot this morning. Memories flood back from my childhood and all the crazy fun things my uncle used to say and do to us. I mean, do with us. =)

But I'm sad. Just plain sad. My heart is heavy for my family. Death is just a hard thing to deal with, and it is hard to see some phases of life end so abruptly. At any rate, we'd really appreciate your prayers for our family this week as we deal with this event.