A family Story: Jeremiah to the rescue!

April 27, 2011

A family Story: Jeremiah to the rescue!

Marge Martin ~ All-American Basketball Player!

There is a family story that I have wanted to write about for many years. It involves a wide range of family members, but especially sheds a broad light on the character of my eldest son Jeremiah. It's a story worth remembering...and I tell it for many, but especially for you, Mom, who gained the most that day.

Marge Martin ~Mamamart~

To set the scene, my beloved grandmother, lovingly known to all her grandchildren as "Mamamart", had recently passed away and we were preparing an intimate, private family memorial service in her honor. Of course, all who knew and loved her best would know that this service would have to involve the ocean in some capacity, for she had dearly loved it! It only made sense to have it be her final resting place. So my mom, thinking it fitting, decided this is what we would do. We would have the service on the beach.
The Bakers, Cookes, Shaws and Uncle Bill (my grandmother's oldest son) would all be there. The plan was to carpool over to the Canaveral Seashore, a lovely nature reserve where crowds are usually at a minimum, no buildings, just a natural beautiful shoreline. This would be a special place for our ceremony and it was just east of Orlando.

The day finally arrived and we all loaded up to carpool over. As we traveled to the beach, a restlessness that had begun the previous night was increasing in me. My mother's plans to empty my grandmother's ashes into the ocean sounded meaningful in theory, but how would this actually play out in reality? None of us had ever really any experience with this type of thing!

Mamamart & her sister Mill

You see, here she was...my precious grandmother, whom I adored and idolized all of my life, now before me in a plastic bag...seeing her this way ripped at my heart! My thoughts clouded immediately and my breathing became shallow as confusion set in. Questions started flooding my mind...This is it? This is all that's left? I knew the answer, but had to reach deep into my faith reserves to confirm the truth. Mamamart had only been passing through this life and her deep faith lead her on to the next. These beautiful rose-colored ashes I held in my hands signified the brevity of life here. I felt more connected to eternity than I had ever felt before.

So, fast-forwarding to the trip over to the seashore....As we drove, my fearful thoughts could no longer be contained, and all traveling in our car experienced my anxious rant! I shared the horrible fears and visions I kept having of my poor mom (who wasn't in our car, incidentally) trying to release Mamamart's ashes into the ocean, only to have them possibly wash up all around her, covering her body, traumatizing us all, especially the children! I questioned why we hadn't planned this better and perhaps chartered a boat...wouldn't that be a more proper way to do this? I was doing a pretty good job of getting us all worked up. We clearly needed a different plan, but time was dwindling and we were almost to our destination. Perhaps my fears were ungrounded, anyway...maybe I was letting my anxiety get the best of me and I just needed to relax and let things be. But I was thinking all the while, "Oh Mamamart, we have surly failed you in these final moments!"

Little did I know a solution WAS resonating quite clearly in the mind and heart of one of the passengers in the car...he'd been listening quite attentively, and even at this moment was formulating a solution!

Setting up tents for shade and chairs, we were finally ready to begin our very sweet tribute to Mamamart, who was sitting so sweetly over on her little perch in a beautiful urn. Paul, my brother-in-law and pastor, informally officiated the service with many of us sharing our fond memories. There was music, too, and plenty of it (being the musical family that we are)! One song especially requested by my dad spoke of a day when we are all to be reunited after this life is passed...none of us thought we'd get through it without weeping, yet today we would give it our best shot!

The fond recollections began..."To most, she was known as Marjorie Leonard Martin....

Lonnie,Keli,Darby,M~Mart

Carrie & M~Mart

But to us who knew and loved her BEST, she was fondly known as Mamamart...
an All-American basketball playing athlete, a college graduate and single mother of 3 children, one of which was developmentally delayed, and a challenge she willingly and lovingly embraced throughout her entire lifetime. She raised all 3 children well, and all on her own (sadly divorcing her husband early on for family neglect). Mamamart went on to attain her Master's degree in Education and administrated schools, touching and influencing the lives of children as well as her colleagues through out her career. She also contributed to her community and church family during her remarkable life here, all the while loving well and spoiling her four grandchildren... we adored her!"

The stories were shared, the tears fell, the songs were sung...and as our time was drawing to a close, the time came to sing the sweet song Dad had wanted us to sing-- and to release my grandmother...

Jeremiah Daniel Shaw

"There is a day that all creation's waiting for.....and on that day the Lord will come to meet His bride... and when we see Him, in an instant we'll be changed..."

As I wept singing these words, I turned, and there to my left, Jeremiah was quietly suiting up and grabbing his surfboard. Respectfully walking over to the urn, he lovingly removed Mamamarts ashes, and turned toward the ocean. No words were spoken...only this beautiful song being sung. He got on his board and began paddling with one hand, struggling to protect the ashes with the other. He finally made it out beyond the breakers (not an easy task) to calm water. Sitting up on his board, he released her ashes into the sea....all of us watching and crying, caught up in this special moment. Jeremiah paused briefly as if to wish her farewell, then turned his board, caught a good wave and surfed it in. (Mamamart would have liked that part!)

"Then all hurt and pain will cease, and we'lll be with Him forever. And in His glory we will live" rang the final words of the song as time stood still and marched on all in the same moment.

Marges daughter, Jeremiah's grandmother...my precious mom!

For my mom as she watched from the shore, life had come full-circle. This simple act of inner strength she had just witnessed in her eldest grandson helped heal a lifetime of disappointments in the weaknesses of the men on her side of her family who had so often failed her. She was so very proud of her grandson.Today was a new day!

...And on this day, saying farewell to our beloved grandmother turned out to be so much more than we could have planned or ever hoped for.