Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Dear Carley and Family:
Judith and I want to express our love and sympathy to you all. Our memories of Dent and Carley first go back to the Markham Missionary Church. They were a wonderful influence and example to us as young people. We remember Dent's warmth, smile and genuine interest in us. His laughter and ability to find the humour in life are unforgettable. His laughter was infectious and brought so much joy to many. It was a special gift to us all!
I realized today what a special memory of Dent we have in our home, so I am sharing this little story as a tribute to him. If he were here, I know he would beam and laugh at the story. In some way I trust it will trigger the memory of him being Dent - laughing - and that it will bring comfort.
When we lived in Markham and our kids were small (about 30 years ago), I built a stable out of cedar shingles. We bought a carved, wooden manger scene set that included a manger, baby Jesus and wise men and found some carved wooden camels and then some plastic sheep to complete the scene. A piece of brown fabric became the ground. We decided that some hay or straw was needed to improve the realism of the scene. So the call went out to Dent on a Saturday morning as the farm in Markham was only minutes away from our home. Dent told me where to get hay in the barn as he and Carley were not going to be around.
We got the hay!! After Christmas it went in a plastic ziplock sandwich bag for storage. And for 30 years it has been placed in the manger scene and then put back in the bag until next year.
This Christmas our 3 year-old granddaughter , Hayley , took a great interest in the manger scene on the chest in our living room. She was intrigued with the animals and the real hay! One day in the holiday she came to Grandma and said her finger was hurting her. When Grandma asked what had happened, Hayley said she had hurt it on the "holy hay."
Today I couldn't help but think how Dent would have laughed at that - the humour in life. And now each Christmas when the hay comes out, it will trigger a special memory of Dent.
Dent's hope of eternal life is now his reality. We pray that this will bring comfort and hope for each of you.
Ron Gooding
(for Ron and Judith)
