Amazing Grace

I mentioned a couple a days ago that I was trying to sing my boy to sleep so that he could get an afternoon rest. Singing him to sleep is something I used to do regularly some time back when he was much smaller.

Tonight I sang to him again as he went off to sleep. This time he asked me to sing Amazing Grace. It’s a very special song for us. I used to sing it to him a couple of years ago and he really loves the song.

In August of 2002, my father was seriously ill in hospital. Although he was a Christian in his teens, he had not followed Christ after his service as a cook in the second world war.

As he put it he “made his peace with Jesus” while in hospital. In the week following his decision he talked about going home to Jesus his Saviour and of seeing his wife again. (Mum passed away in 1987.) Our family had never heard dad talk that way before. There had been a huge change in him.

On Saturday at the end of that week he was in a pretty bad way. We went to the hospital to visit and he wasn’t really there. Most of the time he was in a very deep sleep. James was just three and a half at the time and I held him in my arms beside the bed. James then started to sing Amazing Grace. I joined him quietly to help him with the words. Dad opened his eyes and acknowledged us there. We stayed a little longer and then headed home. Dad passed away that night.

We were the last visitors to see dad and I imagine the last thing he would have seen and heard while on this earth was a very small boy, his grandson, singing about the Amazing Grace that he now knew so well.

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