A Father’s Joy
Author: Andrew Comiskey
April 25, 2022
My son Nick and his wife
Meg endured the loss of two children early in their marriage. They welcomed then
wept over Luke and Elizabeth.
Nick and Meg submitted
their suffering to Jesus, who over time turned life-defying losses into
life-defining ones. As pastor and wife, perhaps they serve others better now.
Annette and I wondered
what was next for them as a family, and after a year or so we were kindly asked to
stop asking. Nick and Meg needed to heal, which included a break from considering
and discussing the prospect of kids. Smart.
We gave thanks from our
depths on Thanksgiving of ’20 when Nick and Meg told us they were planning to
begin adoption proceedings. Spoiler-alert: the baby didn’t arrive by Christmas.
Apparently, most adoptions take longer than reforms in the Catholic Church.
Nick and Meg had only just begun…
On February 28th of this year a generous young woman from Cheyenne, Wyoming chose Nick and Meg as
the best match for her baby girl, still a month from delivery. Close yet so
far—mothers in Wyoming can rescind the offer up to the point of leaving the
hospital. We waited with expectancy and feeble detachment.
At 2am on Saturday, March
19th Annette woke me up to announce the birth of Anna Collins
Comiskey. Good sign: Nick and Meg received her in their arms then waited for
the crucial day or two 'til the birth mother’s hospital exit. All good. Then
another wait in Cheyenne with Anna to square state requirements.
I felt joy for Nick and sympathy
for our common impatience: he has a new senior pastorate that demands a lot.
Hanging out indefinitely in a strange town (no longer a rollicking center of
the 19th century ‘west’) with a sleeping infant while figuring out
what North Carolina requires of them sounded like hell. He did great, better
than I would have.
It was fun to learn how
Anna was born on St. Joseph’s Feast Day. New Dad had to act a little like ol’
Joe (always pictured as being just shy of 92-years-old) who led his family
though repeated difficulties in Bethlehem, Egypt, and Jerusalem. Nick led his
family well and is now happily adjusting with Meg to parenting Anna in Raleigh.
This Easter, Nick’s house
and heart are full. Jesus is risen, and He raises us from grief to gratitude.
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