the other side of Mother's & Father's Day

Mother's & Father's Day is a day of:  struggle,  remorse, and grief for :

• the parent who has lost a child, whether by miscarriage, as a young child or as an adult.  
• the person who wanted to be a mother or father, but could not;  
• the parent  who feels they should have been a better parent;
• the parent whose child is in jail or prison;
• the parent who is estranged from their children;
• the person who gave up her child and wonders where that child is today.
• the woman who aborted her child and wonders how they would look today.
• any person who has lost their loving mother or father. 
• any person who had an emotionally detached or abusive mother and/or father. 

For my husband and I, Mother's Day & Father's Day have been a bittersweet day.
For almost 26 years. 

Why Mother's Day?  Why Father's Day? 

A New Year, A New Song

New Song

chādāš  šiyr

New is the Hebrew chādāš (2319) which indicates something new as in
 ‘never seen or done before’ 

Song  in Hebrew, is  Šiyr (7892) a type of lyrical or religious song.   It appears several times
in Ezra and Nehemiah to refer to songs of Levitical choirs. 

A wonderful meaning is created when these two words are used together.  

The term 'new song' appears 7 times in the OT and in each we see a new song
being composed in response to what God has done. 

Adam Clarke writes – “Fresh mercies call for new songs of praise and gratitude”. 

What could be more appropriate, as we start a new year
than to be reminded to sing a new song every day?  
After all, we have been promised new mercies each day from God. 

               Lamentations 3:21-23 (NIV)
                   ²¹ Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:
                   ²² Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.
                   ²³ They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

So each day's new mercies, new blessings, new joys, and
new triumphs should result in a new song from us. 

I sent the above comments about a new song to my parents on January 2nd. 
On January 5th, I received an e-mail response from my 88 y/o mother. 

After reading my e-mail my, Mom sat down and wrote me a new song - literally!