The Idea of an Essay, Volume 4

Narrative & Memoir 53 my life. During the first week of school, Cedarville held their fall Bible conference, with messages every morning and night. This year, Clayton King spoke, and God used these messages in a big way. I decided to rededicate my life to Christ. I was excited to trust God with my life again. Then, three weeks into the semester I received the news that would shake my world. One Saturday, my sister and I decided to hang out in the HSC and do homework together. After an hour my dad asked us if we could Skype with him. When I saw his face, I could tell something was wrong. My dad told us in a shaky voice, “Grandpa had a stroke and the doctors don’t think he will be able to recover.” My face dropped, and I stared at the ground paralyzed by the news. He told us he would keep us updated on how he was doing. Eight days later I went to church with two of my friends. When I got back from church, my sister texted me to meet her at her dorm. I walked over and saw my sister, mom, and dad in the parking lot. My sister told me in a quiet voice, “Grandpa had just passed away.” I opened my mouth to say something but couldn’t find the words to speak. I hugged my parents, and we all went to Young’s Dairy to talk about the situation. The funeral was in Florida and was happening the following weekend. My sister and I wanted to go, but my sister had to stay in Ohio to take care of my grandma. Although my sister had to stay, my parents said I could go. We were leaving Wednesday to travel so I only had three short days to prepare for the trip. I told my RA, Rodrigo and some of my friends who lived in my unit that my grandpa had passed away and I was leaving to go to Florida in three days. I told my friend Alex this, and I also said that we are making the trip on a shoestring. The day before I left for the trip I found a thirty-dollar gift card on my desk. I didn’t know how to respond to this act of love. All my life when I experienced hard times I felt alone; this time it was different. I met with Rodrigo the day before I left, and he talked with me about the situation. It was difficult to talk about my grandpa’s funeral plans, and I couldn’t explain how I felt about everything without crying. Then he asked to pray with me said, “Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for being so good to us and being our God. I thank you for Timmy. Thank you for blessing him into our lives. We come to you today with heavy hearts. You know all that has happened