Scripture: Unto thee will I cry oh Lord, my rock; be not silent to me: Lest, if thou be silent to me I become like them that go down into the pit. Hear the voice of my supplication, when I cry unto thee, when I lift up my hands toward the holy oracle (sanctuary)… Blessed be the Lord because he has heard the voice of my supplication…Amen (selected passages from Psalm 28). Dear Lord our heavenly father, as you already know, our family members will still be in a mourning mode due to the loss of our only brother, “Ronnie”. By your grace and mercy, this is the first loss we have experienced within our Hilton family since the expiration of both of our parents, Clifford and Willie B. Hilton many years ago. Interestingly, over the years, our siblings have chosen Thanksgiving Day as our family reunion day, also. As our children matured and moved to distant cities in which they established families of their own, some have chosen to celebrate holidays among themselves and sometimes, in different ways from our traditional ways. It’s kind of like the “empty nest syndrome”. Lord, sometimes we become “teary-eyed” at their absences and what we deem neglect, and try to comfort ourselves of our remembrances of “us” doing similar things to our parents, but it still hurts (sob! sob! sob!). But Lord, even though you and your son, Jesus Christ are one, you missed his presence for approximately 33 years knowing the pain and agony he was scheduled to suffer at our hands who are your children, also. Even though he came to offer us eternal life through him, we knew him not, including some members of the family you picked to rearhim. His cousin, John the Baptist, announced his arrival by baptizing him in the Jordan River. Afterwards, you and the holy spirit appeared with the assurances that upon him depends our salvation. But, the majority of us have chosen the downward path to total destruction to your and our sorrow. Furthermore, at our Thanksgiving table, minus Ronnie and wife, “Jackie”, the few of us who are left (now that we have become the oldest ones) will gallantly carry on our Thanksgiving and family reunion in the traditional manner in which we were taught by our parents. We will gather around the table decked with traditional Thanksgiving food, hold hands, sing a hymn, and recite a memory verse. Afterwards, our ninety-eight-year-old host, Rev. John Allen, III, at whose home, along with his wife, “Dena”, in which the dinner is held, will pray. To finalize the tradition, we will sing Grace with harmony that should be recorded due to beautiful voices still evident among us. In addition, thank you, Lord, for hearing my prayer and providing us with another Thanksgiving Day reunion. Please Lord; bless our children and their families wherever they may be. I am praying they will continue as they were taught, to thank you for being there for them, also. Equally important, condolences go to my beloved nurse, Mrs. Olevia Washington, who lost her last brother a few days ago, and to other families in mourning who are facing empty chairs at Thanksgiving, also. Thank you for hearing my prayers. Love, Jacquelyn Simmons P.S. Please pray for those persons who unfortunately will not have Thanksgiving Dinner.
Lord! Our brother “Ronnie” will not be at our Thanksgiving table
