Thank you for the various emails and messages we’ve received since we last sent an update and thank you for your prayers - apologies that we've not been able to respond to everyone. My mum passed away last Tuesday, August 31st, peacefully at home. We’re so thankful that she is now with her saviour, free from pain and suffering.
It has been such a blessing to be here over the last three months, to be living so close to my parents and to be able to spend so much time with them and other family members too. We’ve all enjoyed catching up with family and friends over the summer and the boys have had a great time, especially with their different cousins.
The boys are really happy to be back at school and the routine seems to be good for us all, after a particularly unsettled few weeks of uncertainty at the end of my Mum’s life. Simeon has settled well into the Reception class and we’re so thankful for the friendly, small size of the school and the support offered by the teachers. |
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| One of my favourite photos of my Mum and Joel. For the majority of my pregnancy we didn’t think she would still be around to meet the baby. In the end they had a treasured two and a half years getting to know each other. |
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Starting to look forward
As much as it’s been an unexpected blessing to be able to return to the UK, considering the sad reason for our return, we have always been conscious of the fact that we are here temporarily and are keen to return to Uganda when we are ready.
We hope to return in a couple of months and plan to spend the next few weeks catching up with our link churches and supporters, as well as making the most of being in the same country as family and being here to support my Dad as we grieve together as a family.
Losing my Mum has obviously been hard for us all but the boys are conscious that Grandma dying is tied up with our return to Uganda and they’ve been asking a lot of questions about what this means. Ezra in particular (our eldest at 8 years) seems to have been most affected by my Mum’s death and he’s also very aware of the difficulties in transitioning again between countries.
We’d appreciate prayer that as a family we would have time to properly grieve for my Mum and support my Dad while we’re so close by, but also to prepare well for returning to Uganda. We want to appreciate this relatively settled time over the next couple of months, with the boys back in school, and make the most of seeing friends and family while we’re in the UK.
We’ve had some good conversations, particularly with the older two boys, over the last few weeks, about Heaven, God’s character, his plans and promises for his children. Just as we trust that Grandma is safe in heaven with God, we trust that, as his children, he has good plans for us and will continue to guide us and provide for us as he so clearly has done on this journey so far. We know that he is our anchor, our rock and source of strength and peace as we once again prepare to move.
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Thank you again for all your support and prayers and we look forward to seeing some of you as we travel around the country in the next few weeks.
Blessings,
Verity, Tom, Ezra, Eli, Simeon and Joel |
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