Moving A Mountain with a Spoon as a shovel

Finished a very quick read, a grief book called "When There Are No Words" by Charlie Walton.  He said that the death of a child produces a mountain of pain that you are standing in front of and now you have the task of moving that mountain one small spoonful at a time as you move through the grieving process.   And the people who circle around you in a time of tragedy being the ones who have shovels and say "I cannot move this mountain for you, but let me take a shovel full away" by the things they do for us in our grief.  I just LOVE the word picture this creates.

I am sure I cannot possibly thank EVERYONE who has taken a shovel full of my pain away, but I wanted to acknowledge several who stood out as I prayed on this tonight that you may not have heard before:

• Brian - the first grieving parent to reach out to me ... he came to Max's viewing to share his story of losing his own teenage son in a car accident not too long ago ... and has continued to encourage me as I go along. 
• Gwen - my grocery fairy!  She goes to the grocery store for me so I do not have to face the anxiety and tears that inevitably come.
• Carol - a long lost friend who came back into my life when Max died and has been a strong support
• Dana - who always has a story about Max to tell me and who gives me permission to share my pain by asking me questions about my grief
• Teine - a colleague and friend who lost a daughter and has been a lifeline of encouragement and support
• Joni - who always seems to know the right words to validate our deep grief (and who brought us so much food!!)
• Robin - who MARRIED Todd & I 21 years ago ... who insisted I get into a mom's support group immediately ...
• Kim & Jessica - two Heights teachers that carry more than their fair share of our heavy burden!   (so so many ways)
• Sandra & Darlene - the two wonderful women I work with who have walked with me each day regardless of my insane mood swings, my tears, the cement blocks tied to my body that make me lose all motivation and focus ... they keep The Clutter Cutter in business!
• ALL of my new friends both in "real life" and "on facebook" that have lost a child - they each have their own mountains, but by sharing life together, we now take shovels to each others mountains and somehow chip them down.  Some of these gals I feel very close to now that we've chipped away at each others mountains!!
• Jenny - another Heights parent who goes out of her way to hug me, cry with me, and shower love on my family every time I see her at a football / basketball game
• Kathy - who sends me cards frequently, and each anniversary date as the months tick off....
• Jane - who has lost a sibling and always helps me understand the things Wesley might be struggling with
• Paul - sending me texts frequently when Max runs through his mind or anything he comes across that he think might help us in our grieving process

There are many more people with shovels who have helped others in my family ... but that is another note!! :O) 

Thank you all, and to all those not mentioned in this note who have reached out to me.  I guess as I reflect on this list, what amazes me is that there is no one single big act that stands out ... just the willingness to be a part of our pain and do the smallest things along the way.  That is truly awesome.