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I absolutely love the story of Ruth and Naomi. There are several reasons why this is the case: one is when I read the words, “Where you go I will go, Where you live, I will live …” I immediately think of several things. First, I think of my children and how I would follow them absolutely anywhere. I will let them drag me through the messy and beautiful journey that will be their lives. These verses also comfort me to think that God says this very thing to us. He is here with us always and loves us unconditionally.
My favorite thing about this story is it always makes me think of my own story with my own mother-in-law. This may be WAY too honest, but our story begins with some very difficult Februarys. You see, each February, my mother-in-law (who usually lived in Florida) would rent out her home for the MONTH and come and live with us. At the time we had Abby and Charlotte, toddler and infant, respectively. She would start each weekend morning by literally reading me every one of her emails and we can’t even get into the not-so-subtle parenting advice. A week or two in, I was hitting the sack about the same time the sun went down and had perfected my eye roll.
In 2016, everything changed. My mother-in-law was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and came to live with us in Spartanburg permanently. One of her first, more invasive diagnostic work up procedures was scheduled for a Friday I had off so we went together.
The entire day was unbelievably tough for her and I was exposed to the most real version of my vulnerable mother-in-law. It was the first of so many moments we would share. I made up my mind that very day that I would give her my everything from that point on, and I did… Where you go, I will go…
It is utterly amazing how the Lord blesses unconditional, selfless, boundless love and….gosh, maybe this was the first time I had ever truly given it in the way it deserves to be given. All I know is that the relationship we cultivated during that time truly changed my life forever.
And so from now on when I read about the journey between a mother and daughter-in-law that began after tragedy, I will forever be grateful for the blessing that is unconditional love.
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