Baby Step 16 Don't Be Afraid to Look Back

My sister sent me the lyrics to the song "These Are the Women We Come From." It made me cry as I thought of my mother who is 88 and struggling from day to day. I never hear the pain or fear when I talk to her on the phone. Occasionally I see it when I go to stay with her.

I, too, struggle to be strong, to look beyond my pain. I try to be present in every moment, but find it easy to slip down and want to give in and give up. Then I read Psalm 136 and am reminded "His love endures forever." I read Psalm 91 and remember: because I love God, He will rescue me. Because I acknowledge His name, he will protect me. When I call upon Him, and He will answer me, He will be with me in trouble.

Paul reminds Timothy (2 Timothy 1:5) that the faith that lives in him first lived in his grandmother, Lois, and his mother, Eunice.

These Are the Women We Come From

(Bonnie Keen/Tori Taff)

They are faces in photographs

Heads all held high

Not afraid to look life in the eye

They were women with backbone

Keepers of the Flame

With a spirit even hard times couldn’t tame

And I know that this same blood is in me

And I meet their gaze one by one

Eyes strong and clear

I still feel them near

Chorus:

These are the women I come from

The faith that sustained them is bred in my bones

I know what I’m made of and where I belong

‘Cause these are the women I come from

What did life bring them?

What pain did they know?

Stories the pictures didn’t show

They were lovers of babies and lovers of God

With lessons and laughter in their songs

Did they dream better dreams for their children?

As they prayed silent prayers in the night?

“Lord make their way clear and always be near”

Chorus

Now I have my own child beside me

And we gaze at them all one by one

Her eyes strong and clear,  I draw her near, and say

These are the women you come from

The faith that sustained them is bred in your bones

You know what you’re made of and where you belong

‘Cause these are the women

Survivors each one

They weren’t always easy, but loving and strong

God’s life force inside them is still going on

‘Cause these are the women we come from

Don't be afraid to look back.