The Claddagh is a traditional Irish wedding band rich with symbolism. The hands represent friendship, the crown represents loyalty, and the heart represents eternal love. My claddagh has a fourth meaning to me, it is a symbol of my family's roots. I am largely Irish and Polish, with some other European and even a little Native American thrown in :-) As a history fanatic I have always been intrigued by my ancestry - it is a tapestry of stories woven together by my ancestors. Returning to my ancestor's countries is a bucket list goal of mine - I feel the hills of Ireland and the fields of Poland calling me.
I believe that God called me home a few years ago. Like a parent sending their child to school for the first time, God sends us into life - hoping that we will come back home to that love and light. I don't have children, but I imagine that parents feel an amazing sense of joy and relief when their children come home from the first day of school to tell them they had a good day, but they are happy to be home. But we don't always return home to God. How devastating and frightening that must be. I know that I personally was a runaway for many years...probably gone long enough to be considered a missing person! But God never gave up on me, even when I felt that I had been ignored and given up on. It took a series of tragic, but eye-opening and heart-warming events for me to hear the call home. It took a lot of growing and changing before I was able to step through the front door. It has been a process that has taken years...and even though I still have moments when I wonder if I belong (as I imagine a long-estranged child would), I am finally starting to feel like I have returned home.
John 14:2 In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?
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