I was chatting with my mom yesterday about random tid bits from home, including paint colors she was letting dry to replace what my siblings and I affectionately called "Beige Hell" due to the fact that the entire house was painted some sort of beige/cream color... and has since remained so until my siblings and I at different times decided we could not handle it anymore and painted our bedrooms bright, vibrant or just plain pretty colors to break up the monotony that was beige hell.. aka home haha.. Then about a year ago my mom surprised ALL of us and painted the kitchen yellow. We were shocked.. and elated all at the same time... Currently my mom is in the process of changing several walls to a (as my sister calls it) mint green or chocolate pudding brown.. I am pumped to see it since my entire bedroom here in DC is a chocolate mocha brown.
Then my mom went into random thoughts about my brother and things going on with him, the upcoming anniversary party, and random things my sister has been doing that is really funny to help me prep for the party...
Then mom explained a situation that they are all facing. There is a chance (a good one) that another person will make an entrance into the family due to circumstances that need changing. Ironically, the last time this took place, he is still living there, refers to my parents as mom and dad, calls our place home, and honestly has lived there for almost the better part of 3 years now. He has grown up a lot since moving in with my family, and done a whole lot of stupid with my little brother.. but, somehow through it all God has used this situation to touch and make a difference to all of us in the family. As my mom put it when he moved back home after being gone for a while... it was contentment and peace feeling like "family" was where it was supposed to be. She and dad were shocked to find out he was contemplating changing his last name to ours... as ironically another girl who has since affectionately become another sister did.. well, that is until she got married. However, we are facing a new situation in the family, one that will certainly require a lot of prayer and wisdom on my parents part, but somehow there seems to be a lot of peace in the decision as well. The timing seems perfect too seeing as our other "brother" is getting ready to head to boot-camp for what is the beginning of a journey that has taken a while to get into... Which means there is a free bed to be had in my brothers room. God's timing is perfect.. and amazes me constantly..
However, today I was talking with my little sister about the situation, since she had brought it up asking if I had heard.. so I was getting her thoughts and opinions. Checking to make sure she was feeling ok about it all... Which not only was she ok about it, she was blowing me away with the maturity and clarity in which she sees the situation. Especially since there are certain aspects of home life that will have to change in order to accommodate the new member of the family.. And, most of those accommodations will have to be enacted on her as well.. She not only is aware of these new facts of her life, but welcomes them with the understanding and wisdom that many people my age could not fathom. She gets the bigger picture of what is at stake and what this means in an eternal sense. I am amazed. We also spent a while joking about my parent's unspoken game of "let's see how large we can grow our family without having any more babies!" ... If we look at this.. my family has suddenly ballooned from 6 to 7 after marriage, to 10 after their kids, to soon to be 13 if this situation pans out.. and really 14 with the marriage of one of the "siblings"... and 15 with an addition of a girl friend... Talk about multiplication of family! Sheesh!.. I mean really, talk about the love of Christ for my parents to have grown their family from 10 to 15 merely because they have chosen to love others unconditionally through pain, frustration, aggravation, laughter, birthdays, farts, roughhousing, furniture breaking, food... lots and lots of food bills, more activities than vehicles to take people, and more hugs than anyone but the Lord can count...
My parents amaze me with how quickly they jump in and not only accept these situations, but roll up their sleeves and prepare to be more intentional than most people ever know or realize.. My parents rarely do anything without thinking it through and calculating the cost... And amazingly they choose to do it and make the sacrifices anyway... All because they understand the Grace, Mercy, but mostly the unconditional Love they have received from Christ Jesus our Savior...
But, what amazes me even more is how much both my little brother and little sister truly and honestly get the fact that these situations mean something more than physically having another person in the house.. or having another person feel like home. They understand the greater purpose and the greater reason behind what my parents are doing... And, are not just ok with it, but fully supportive and accepting of the game changers these situations bring into the entire family as a whole.
It is all in the family, and there is no wonder why I am the way I am.. Or that I am so blessed.
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