“The RoseBouquet”

We’re gearing up for another weekend away. This is the holiday I’ve been waiting for - for months now!

My Uncle Henry and Aunt Frieda Kroeker, in Alberta, have raised five fine sons. I feel closer to them than most of my cousins because in our childhood years, they always came back here to our grandparents’ home for holiday weekends. Since that was just a short dash from our house, we considered them our visitors too.

Kenneth, their oldest, was nearly the age of my youngest sister, Erma. The other boys; Robert, Stanley, Glen and Kevin, were all younger of course. Now they tower over me, and all are married, with children except for Kevin. He’s getting married this Saturday.

Robert was single longer than the other fellas, and getting concerned, so he had asked me point-blank to pray that he’d find a good wife. He did too! Linda was a missionary school teacher in Portugal when he first started to correspond with her. (His sister-in-law, Carol had known her, growing up in Ontario). Linda is a lovely person, teaching now in a private Christian school in Calgary, and they have just recently adopted two children, a boy (8) and his sister (6).

So about two summers ago when Dad and I were coming back from Jalise’s wedding in B.C., we stopped at Robert and Linda’s, and talking with Kevin, I asked if I should start praying for a good wife for him too. This shy, 6′7″ tall, man, studying to be a nurse simply said, “Yes, please.”

I made it my business to do so, and guess what - last Thanksgiving Kevin emailed me to say he had proposed to Jena Lynn on a mountain hike and she’d agreed to marry him. Naturally, I wanted to be invited to this wedding! I want to meet Jena!

A double-portion will be to meet all the other guys and their wives and their kids as well. I am so much looking forward to this!

God has worked out very wonderfully our accommodations with missionary friends and relatives for the two nights we’ll be away. Maybe more on that next week, okay?