This week, I had the great fortune of being able to visit with my uncle in Portland! I had not seen him for many years, though it didn’t feel it had been that long ago. I guess it is no coincidence that familiar is derived from family. Being around my uncle felt so familiar. He reminded me of my grandfather (especially) as he looked after me, opened doors, and pulled out chairs for me…and he reminded me of my mother as he playfully joked and complimented his (wonderful!) friends on their best qualities. Undoubtedly his gift for gab comes from my grandmother haha
I’ve always remembered Uncle Lexie as my cool uncle. When I last saw him, I was very young…but I remembered him quietly sitting on the couch in my grandparent’s living room with long blonde dreads and a nose ring, just observing. haha He misses nothing and remembers everything. His mind is somehow more attuned to everything that’s going on. And while he projects calm, somehow you just know there’s a storm raging beneath. Though those who don’t know him would probably tread carefully, I felt supremely protected. It was wonderful to spend the time laughing with him while visiting the beautiful Japanese garden (that I’ve wanted to see since featuring a photo on this post) with one of his lovely friends…who I am tempted to now call Saint Sadie ;) haha She has such a lovely spirit.
My uncle has read the Bible more times than anyone I know. He told me that reading the Bible is how he keeps calm and finds peace. And as I visited his neat and organized home, he eagerly showed me his well worn Bible and flipped quickly to a footnote he’d highlighted (one of very few highlights) in Matthew 17:15, which said, “selene, the moon.” He’d found my name in the Bible and wanted to show me. My heart flooded with love and appreciation. And I smiled. Then I read the rest of the footnote ‘[Seleniazomai,] from [selene,] the moon, one who was affected with his disorder at the change and full of the moon]’ and scanned the original referenced verse,
“Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick*, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water.”
Things clicked quickly and my smile turned to shock as I said (jaw dropped), “Wait, Uncle Lexie…this says I’m a lunatick!” He said, “Well…” and we both started laughing hysterically.
That is family. And I was truly moon struck by our lovely visit :)
Photo source: Moonstruck by Jorge Coromina