Honoring Your Parents

Little did I know while writing my article last week that within hours of completing it I would be called upon to do something I really didn’t want to have to do. I received a phone call from my sister in Houston informing me our father was in the hospital in Brownsville with a severe case of pneumonia. She let me know she was unable to break away from some obligations and would I go look into the situation. I’m grateful for my parents aged life, although my mother passed on a while back, and at age 90 I know it’s only a matter of time before my father’s physical well being would decline and he would have to fall back on those who love him to care for him. Don’t get me wrong here. This may not be something I’ve been looking forward to, nor is it something I want to do, but approaching the situation with prayer, love and concern, I, and my siblings, and my spouse, will accept this challenge of life in remembrance of our dependent childhood.
Brittany, age 4, had an earache and wanted a painkiller. She tried in vain to remove the cap from the pill bottle. Seeing her frustration her mother explained it was a childproof cap and that she would have to remove it for her. Shocked the little girl asked, “How does it know it’s me?” …Susan, age 4, got the hiccups while drinking juice. “Please don’t give me this kind of juice again”, she said. “It makes my teeth cough!” …Diana, age 4, stepped onto the bathroom scale and asked, “So, how much do I cost?” ...Marc, age 4, observed a young couple hugging and kissing in the restaurant. Without taking his eyes off them he asked his dad, “Why is he whispering in her mouth?” …James, age 4, was listening to a Bible story. After his dad read, “Lot was warned to take his wife and flee out of the city and not look back, but his wife looked back and was turned into a pillar of salt.” James asked, “What happened to the flea?” …Tammy, age 4, was with her mother when they met an elderly, and rather wrinkled woman, her mother knew. Tammy looked at her a while and then asked, “Why doesn’t your skin fit your face?” …Steven, age 3, hugged and kissed his mom goodnight saying, “I love you so much that when you die, I’m going to bury you right outside my bedroom window.” …Joseph, age 5, called his grandfather on the telephone to wish him a happy birthday. He asked him how old he was and his grandfather said, 62. Joseph was quiet for a moment, and then asked, “Grandpa, did you start at one?”
[1 Timothy 5: 1-8] I don’t really know what lies ahead, but we pray our father’s illness, restlessness and confusion will pass, once released from the hospital and returns to more familiar surroundings. But, it matters not what his status elevates or declines to, God says we have an obligation to those of our immediate family in need. As I pray for guidance and wisdom in this endeavor of caring for a loved one, I also hold to my faith that God will provide like care for me one day, if I too live long enough to become old and once again dependent on another for my physical well being. Living a righteous life is living a life to please God in all we do. Verse 4 says this: “But if a widow has children or grandchildren, these should learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and grandparents, for this is pleasing to God.” Our parents may not remember all we do for them in their old age any more than we remember all they did for us in our childhood, but honor must prevail.