The year 2017 started pretty darkly for a young lady and me, as we would both lose our mothers within months of each other. My mom was 79 and was ill with Cancer. Laycica’s mom was only 54 and had a blood-clotting disorder. Laycica’s mom Sherry was my friend. She let me love her horse Smokey, and she shared him with me during a tough time. Smokey was very healing for Sherry and me. We both shared a close bond with this horse.
Years later, when Sherry’s illness took a downward turn, she made plans for me to have her horse. She gave him to me even though I offered to buy him. Her main concern was that he be happy and with someone who would love him forever. My husband and I went to Chattanooga to get Smokey that February. Seeing Smokey for the first time in two years was so special. I sang the familiar Billie Holiday tune to Smokey that I had always sung, and he perked right up! Hubby got it on video, and it was an extraordinary reunion.
I was able to show my Mama that video while she was in the hospital. Mama knew what Smokey meant to me, and she was so glad to see that I would have him. When I lived with her, she would see me come home dirty from loving on Smokey and riding him many times. Smokey filled my heart when I went through the pain of divorce back in 2009, and now he was there for me during the painful moments of losing my mother. My mom passed at the end of February.
Sherry came to visit Smokey to see where his new home was and though she had pain in her legs, I coaxed her to get up on Smokey’s back one more time. She did, and it was as if she were not ill. The moment Sherry was on Smokey, every care she had, disappeared. She was happy, she was smiling, and she was loved.
Just a few weeks later, Sherry passed away. I was so glad she visited Smokey and saw him happy in his new home. I am so happy Sherry got to ride him one last time. I am glad my Mama got to see me loved by my forever husband and that she saw that I got my love, Smokey, before she passed on.
Laycica and I became friends after her mom passed, and I reached out to her with memories of her mom and shared with her that I had just lost my mom. It brought a kinship-friendship, and she and I keep up with each other on Facebook, and we are emotional support for each other.
Laycica came to see Smokey in Kentucky this summer for the first time. She brought her husband Bret and their two sons, Evan and Ethan. Evan remembered riding Smokey when his “La La” would put him on his back. He was excited to see Smokey again.
For Laycica, it was about being part of something very dear to her mother. And her mother’s ashes were spread across the pasture at Grace Reins, where Smokey lives. After the boys played with the goats and petted the pig, we went to see Smokey. They patted him, and then I took Laycica’s hand, and we walked in the pasture. I showed her the area where her mother’s remains were spread. It was a tearful moment, and maybe God allowed her mom’s spirit to visit at that moment.
Laycica and I enjoyed talking about her mom and sharing memories, and then we had an early dinner before they headed back. On her way home, she had asked God for a rainbow (she had seen a double rainbow when her mom had passed away, and it was her ‘sign’ that God gave her for comfort).
Not even five minutes later, Laycica saw a double rainbow! That is how great God is! He cares that much for us and knows how to speak to our hearts when we listen. Ask, and you shall receive.
God gave Laycica a ‘double’ gift of a rainbow not just in the sky, but while her boys were playing with my grandchildren, Evan had colored a picture for his mom – it was a rainbow. Laycica opened the drawing up and realized God sent her another rainbow through her son.
Love lives on. Death, where is thy sting? Our loved ones may pass on, but they are forever etched in our memories and carried on through other loved ones and gifts God brings. He doesn’t want to take anything away from us. He knows best, and as He carries out His plans, God cares enough to comfort us in so many little ways that are BIG when hurt comes our way. He reaches deep into our hearts to what speaks to us most, providing just what we need.
If you have asked God to show you a sign or comfort you and you haven’t seen anything yet, don’t give up or think God doesn’t love you. His timing is perfect. He waits for our hearts to be precisely where they need to be before giving us such gifts. Never doubt God. He is our Father and cares for each one of us.
I share this personal story with you because we have a personal God who loves us, and I cannot keep that to myself. His love is meant to be shared.
In Loving Memory of Sherry Crowther