The Familiar Penmark

As I drove to church this morning, God gave me an image in my head...it was the image of my maternal  grandmother who had a familiar penmark. The word familiar kept popping up in my head and so I said, "Ok God, where is this going." So this is what God gave me this morning.

My Grandma Brandon was beautiful. She never wore makeup and never cut her hair. She was apostolic. I remember my mom teasing her hair and carefully placing her hair in a bun on the top of my grandma's head. She loved how my mom did her hair. My grandma had 12 children. 9 girls and 3 boys. (Imagine the drama!) My grandma was the epitome of the strong maternal figure. 

I remember her familiar penmark. When she was little and was in school, she turned around in her chair and someone behind her poked her in the forehead with a pen. As the story goes, from then on she bore the mark of the pen on her forehead which never went away. When my grandmother passed away, I remember being at the funeral home and observing all the sisters as they grieved together and became liked little girls again in some way. I remember my mom in the bathroom with her sisters as they wiped the wet kleenex off each other's face. I remember vividly my Aunt Pat crying because the funeral parlor had covered up my grandma's penmark with makeup. She insisted that they remove the makeup and they did. 

There is something familiar about the ones we love, whether its the penmark on grandma or its the scar on Kurt's forehead or the scars on his stomach from his pyloric stenosis surgery or his kidney surgeries. It's the wrinkles that inevitably occur as we age. If our mothers were to get face lifts every 10 years, we would not have that familiar face to look at that brings us comfort. I sincerely love my mother's wrinkles. Our world is so caught up on being young, looking young, feeling young. There is something to be said about my father's thinning hair that gives me peace. If one day he would arrive with a toupee or hair plugs I would freak out, literally. 

Ok, so then I started thinking about God's wrinkles. No, not the types of wrinkles that you are thinking of. I am thinking of what is familiar about God. He is our father in Heaven and never changes. He is familiar. We turn our backs and run the other way, we rebel, we get angry with him for allowing painful things. All the while He is waiting with open arms like a father would, saying,"Run to me Megan, and I will scoop you up." He is loving, steady, fearless, wise, good, patient, forgiving. He is like the penmark...once he is present in your life, there is no erasing him! He is there forever whether you like it or not. He can't be covered with makeup. He is familiar to those who follow him and love him. He never changes and will always be there to scoop you up. 

Hebrew 13:8

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. 

Thank you God for this fact.

Meg when she was first born with Grandma Brandon