From the Rector
By the Rev. Donna S. Mote, PhD
Dear People of St Paul’s,
Grace and peace.
“Be who you needed when you were younger.” This is a meme I like a lot and have posted more than once on social media as a reminder to myself and others.
We all need people who are on our side, who stand by us even when they don’t quite understand us, who demonstrate that they always have our back, who show up for us when we need them.
A term I have applied to such people in my life is “grace giver.”
I have been blessed with two aunts and an uncle, who are my mother’s three siblings, who have been those people for me all along my journey of life.
It’s difficult to put into words how much they mean to me or how connected I feel to them even when we are geographically far apart. It always makes me misty just to think of it.
My Mom was Marcella. She died in May 2018. She was the second of four children of my maternal grandparents to survive infancy. Two others died when they were very small.
Five years older than Marcella was Dorothy. She died in July 1999, and we all still miss her every day.
Five years younger than Marcella was Betty. She will turn 93 on January 28 of this year.
Seven years younger than Marcella was Si. He will turn 91 on April 1 of this year.
All three of these elders have advised me and walked with me across the decades. They have offered the acceptance my parents sometimes could not. They have affirmed me not only for achieving but also for being.
On Christmas Day on the phone with Aunt Betty I said that maybe next Christmas she could come here. As soon as I hung up the phone, I commented to Becky that perhaps I might need to help coordinate an Aunt Betty visit before next Christmas. There are no guarantees after all.
I was not the only one thinking along these lines. Earlier this week my cousin Rita, Betty’s daughter, reached out to me with an idea. I said yes.
I cannot tell you how delighted I am that Aunt Betty has chosen to spend her 93rd birthday in Key West. Rita and Paige, Betty’s granddaughter (who visited last October), will come with her.
Sadly, they won’t be here over a Sunday, so most of you won’t get to meet My Betty, aka “the real Betty Davis.” Please believe me when I say, she is a delight, and she is beautiful and life-affirming evidence of the goodness of our God.
