Do you see that young lady standing over there? Standing among the rocks the North Sea has deposited over countless centuries on a stretch of rocky shoreline near a wee village called Inverbervie. It’s located on the northeastern coast of Scotland? She stands there staring out to sea? Her name is Ashley and she is my daughter.
She drew her first drew a breath in a city hospital not that far from there. As an infant and little girl she lived with me her Dad, her Mom, and older sister Angela in a house not far up the path behind her.
As a small child, her Mom pushed her pram up and down that path, just behind these very same stones while her sister would have played among them.
Today she watches as her children search for those special, almost soft, small egg-shaped stones their Grandpa likes to carry in his pocket. It’s a contest to see who can get the best one.
She sees her Mom and Dad sitting at one of the picnic tables at the edge of the beach, no longer trusting themselves to precarious steps on the innumerable loose stones. But they are very much enjoying the fun they see everyone having.
I’m sure she looked over her shoulder at the trees surrounding Hallgreen Castle, the abandoned stately home we used to explore looking for treasures of a bygone era. It was practically in our backyard.
She sees the gentle rolling breakers approaching the shore and hears the sound of millions of rocks and pebbles of all shapes, sizes and colors crashing against each other when the water has spent its momentum and gravity takes it back to the sea. This is a place of natural beauty, a place of memorable sights and sounds. It is incredibly peaceful.
Some years have passed since she was that baby. Today, she also sees her four children and her husband. She nor they may realize she is the rock that keeps them all together. Really there are 5 children. The oldest, a recent Scottish high school graduate is in America on a gap year. I am certain she stands there thinking not of herself, but of them and of others.
In all actuality, I don’t know what her thoughts are. But I’m pretty sure they move to a personal medical battle she is currently fighting. Some months back she was diagnosed with breast cancer and she is currently undergoing chemotherapy, with many therapies and a surgery yet to go.
I’m certain her thoughts aren’t “why me” as mine would be. Not “this shouldn’t be happening to me, but instead, “how can this be used to help and encourage those around me?” She’s that kind of person.
She is a Godly, believing person and I’m sure that enters into her thoughts as she pauses on the rocks. She’s a medical doctor unable to heal herself, while firmly believing in a God who can.
She may even have considered Lee Ann Womack’s famous lyric, “Do you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean?”We’ve often discussed these words after we have found ourselves “beside an ocean.”
But too soon our time is gone and we must move on. She comes to join her kids who have gathered near the tables examining their rocks, stones, and pebbles.
Rain has threatened the whole morning, not an unusual thing in Scotland, especially right next to the North Sea. Our schedule allowed for us to be at Inverbervie our old home and it’s rock beach only that morning.
But, the rain didn’t start until the car doors closed and four adults and four children who had thoroughly enjoyed their morning drove away.
If you are a praying person you might pray for Ashley. You will be joining many family members, college and university friends, family friends, and many friends she doesn’t even know she has, who already are.
Thank you all for listening.