Author Archives: Osbornz

Friday morning we woke up early to travel 8 hours to Brookings, OR to attend the Memorial Service for our friend, Gregg Elrod. Well, I was going to attend….Eric was officiating.
J1 was excited to be going to school without Daddy!! He was getting a ride with a local family (there are only 2 other families in our town who attend the school 20 miles away) and was hoping for a playdate after school too! J3 was going to get a ride to preschool with Grandma O and Grammy would be meeting his bus at noon. And J2 was excited because he didn’t have any school work but would spend the morning with Grandma O at the health club – I think swimming was in his future.
Unfortunately, J3 woke up with the phrase “I didn’t know today was tomorrow” and dissolved in tears. Fortunately there was time for cuddles and reassurances that he wouldn’t miss anything and that we would call him every day. When he understood the tears stopped and he was his normal cheerful self!
On the road we did lots of talking – love traveling with my husband – and were surprised when we made great time! LOL Traveling IS faster/easier without kids! I almost didn’t have enough time to finish crocheting the shawl for my friend (the best thing I was given after Josh died was a soft blanket – I didn’t have the $$ or time to make a blanket – so the shawl was a nice substitute.)
The Memorial was very nice – I couldn’t share my memories cause I knew I’d cry too much – but I plan to type them up and send them to the family! I felt better when I found out Eric skipped parts of what he planned to say based on the fact that he knew he’d break down too.
***Well, I’ve been trying to write this for a week at this point I’m just going to post this as is***
Except I want to add – on our way out of town we couldn’t find Dixie to say goodbye- she’d gone out to breakfast with her folks. So we left messages on her cell phones – one of which had a recording of Gregg’s voice saying “Hi – I’m not here right now…” and it was so great to hear his voice and realize he’s much better off where he is now! So, he’s not here – but the absence is merely temporary until we are all reunited again. Praise the Lord!

Well, our friend died last Friday night. I’ve not written sooner because it caused so many new thoughts and emotions. I felt guilty because my first feeling was relief that it was over. Gregg has left a wife and two young sons (17 and 14) — they need a Dad and Husband – a healthy one too. But then I remember we all had about 11 years of Gregg that we might never have gotten if the Lord hadn’t done a work in him. And, what a work He did.

I wonder if my own loss would have been easier if there had been some lingering or if I would have only built up foolish hopes and hurts. While it is so easy to trace the way God’s Sovreign purposes worked in Gregg’s situation – postponing his death for several years – when I look at Josh’s short life – I don’t see it. I will probably never understand why God gave us Josh after 14 years of infertility to only take him away at such a young age.